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PRESENTED BY 



X. 



A MANUAL 



OF 



ENGLISH HISTORY, 



FOR THE USE OF SCHOOLS. 



by 



EDWARD M. LANCASTER, 

PRINCIPAL OF THE STOUGHTON SCHOOL, BOSTON, MASS. 



NEW YORK •:• CINCINNATI •:• CHICAGO 

AMERICAN BOOK COMPANY 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1877, by 

EDWARD M. LANCASTER, 

ftn the Office of the Librarian of Congrees at Washington. 

W. D.Joimatofl 



fi>rtntc5 b$ 

H. S. JBarnes & Company 

•fl-lcw L'orl;, 11. 5. H. 



PREFACE. 



This " Manual of English History " has been prepared 
to meet the wants of those schools whose limited time 
forbids an extended eourse of study. The mere com- 
mittal to memory of the names of kings and isolated 
events, however important, is in no proper sense a 
study of history. There should be enough of explana- 
tion and detail to make intelligible the relation which 
one event bears to another, that is, the cause and effect 
of events. The author has sought, therefore, in the 
preparation of this Manual, to arrange, in the briefest 
manner consistent with clearness, the essential facts of 
English History. 

The most valuable lesson to be learned by American 
youth from the history of the Mother Country, is the 
worth of liberty, civil and religious. The struggle be- 
tween the king and the people, the one striving to main- 
tain the Royal Prerogative and the other to secure their 
Natural Rights, was happily over long before we be- 
came an independent nation. The principles, estab- 
lished by the Revolution of 1688, stand an enduring 
monument of the triumph of the people. Our consti- 
tution is but the matured product of that long and 
painful struggle, and a just conception of the one can 
be gained only by a careful study of the other. 

If the youth of our land, however few in number, 
shall be aided, by the use of this brief work, in form- 



IT PREFACE. 

ing u juoL estimate of the free institutions under which 
they live, the highest object of the author will have 
been accomplished. 

Among the many works consulted in the prepara- 
tion of this Manual, special acknowledgments are 
due to " Knight's Popular History of England," val- 
uable for its fulness of detail ; and " Green's Short 
History of the English People," which, in the masterly 
comprehension and vivid expression of the spirit of 
English history, stands absolutely without a peer. 

The author remembers thankfully the assistance of 
numerous friends. He takes great pleasure in men- 
tioning the name of his esteemed friend, Henry B. 
Miner, Master of the Dorchester-Everett School of this 
city, to whom he is especially indebted for many valu- 
able suggestions. 

B. K. L 

Boston, 1883. 



KINGS OF ENGLAND. 



SAXON LINE. 


HOUSE OP LANCASTER. 


... 


827— 838—11 
838— 857—20 
857— 800— 3 
8 ( ;ii— 8GG— 6 
8G0— 871— 5 
871— 901—30 
901— 925—24 
925— 911—16 
941— 948— 7 
918- »55- 7 
955— 959— 4 
959— 975—10 
975— 978- 3 
978— 1010— 3S 
1016—1017— 1 




1399—1413—14 






1413—1422— 8 




1422—1401-39 














HOUSE OF YORK. 


Edward the Elder.. 




Atbelstan 




1461-1483—22 






1483. 74 days 
1483 1485 — 2 












Edward the Martyr 




TUDOR FAMILY. 






1485—1509—24 






1599—1547—38 
1547—1553— 6 
1553—1558— 6 
1658—1603—44 




1017—1035-18 
1035— 1U39— 3 
1039—1942— 2 








Edward— Saxou.... 
Harold n— Saxon.. 


1042— 1 005-24 
1005-1066— 1 


STUART FAMILY. 


NORMAN LINE. 




1603—1625—22 






1025 1649—24 




1006—1087-21 
1087—1100-13 
lloo— ll;!5-35 
1136—1154—19 




1949—1660—11 






1600—1685—25 
1085 1688— 3 




Henry I 




1089—1702—13 
1702—1714—12 








PLANTAGENET FAMILY. 


HOUSE OP BRUNSWICK. 




1154—1189-35 
1189— 1199— 10 
119:4— 1210— 17 
1216—1272—56 
1272—1397—35 
1307—1327—20 
1327—1377—50 
1377—1399—22 








1714-1727-13 
1727—1700—33 

1700—1820—60 
1820— 1830— 1C 
1830—1837— 7 












1837- 







1 



(*) 



NAMES OF KINGS AND LEADING TOPICS 



Roman Conquest and Occupation — the first four centuries. 
Saxon Conquest and Heptarchy — the next four centuries. 
Reign of Saxon Kings and Danish Invasions — the ninth and tenth centuries. 
Danish Conquest and Reign of Danish and Saxon Kings — the eleventh 
century. 



•£ P „,..„,, LEADING TOPICS. 



■5 t 

c5 



NAMES OF 
KINGS 

William I. — Norman Rule — Saxon Rebellion — The Feudal System. 

William II. — Beginning of the Crusades — The System of Chivalry. 

Henry I. — First Charter of Liberties — Union of Saxon and Norman Families — 

Robert, Duke of Normandy. 
Stephen — Usurpation — Civil War and Anarchy — Compromise with Henry. 

Henry II. — Plantagenct Rule— Establishment of Order — Constitutions of 
Clarendon and Thomas & Becket — Courts of Justice. 

Richard I. — The Knight and Crusader — Usurpation of John. 

John — Contest with the Pope — Rebellion of Barons — Magna Chnrta. 
3™. Henry III. — Rebellion of Barons —Simon de Montfort — House of Common* 
£ ?* — Prince Edward and the Holy Land. 

r = Edward I. — Conquest of Wales — War with Scotland — Arbitrary Taxation 
jf o Forbidden. 

"■"" Edward II. — War with Scotland— Rebellion — Deposition of Edward. 

Edward HI. —War with Scotland — War with France for the Crown— Chiv- 
^ ^ airy and the Black Frince. 

j§ .3 Richard II. —Wat Tyler's Rebellion — Chaucer— Wickliffe and the First 

s ,® Reformation. 

£" 

Henry IV. — House of Lancaster — Rebellions — Persecution of Reformers. 
" "™ Henry V. — Reformation Suppressed — Conquest of France — The Navy. 

Henry VI. — Joan of Arc and the Loss of France — Jack Cide's Rebellion — 
Wars of the Roses. 



^f 



Edward IV. — House of York — Wars of the Roses — William Caxton and the 

Art of Printing. 
Edward V. — Usurpation of Richard, Duke of Gloucester 
Richard III. — Wars of the Roses ended with the death of Rlohard at Rosworth. 



NAMES OF KINGS AND LEADING TOPICS. vii 



NAMES OF 
KINGS 



LEADING TOPICS. 



Henry VII. — Tudor Family — Union of York and Lancaster — Simncl awl 
Warbeek — Discovery of America — Revival of Learning. 
— . Henry VIII. — Catherine of Aragonand Cardinal VVolsey — Progress of Learn- 
| = ing — Separation from Rome and the Reformation. 

fj g Edward VI. — Reformation Continued — Duke of Northumberland and Lady 
<* ° Jane Grey. 

Mary — Reconciliation with Rome and Persecution of Protestants — Philip of 

Spain — Calais. 
Elizabeth — Church of England — Mary, Queen of Scots — Philip and the 
Armada — Maritime Supremacy — Great Names. 

James I. —Stuart Family — Union of Crowns — Gunpowder Plot — Transla- 
tion of the Bible — Settlement of America. 
Charles I. — Illegal Taxation and Civil War — Petition of Right — Trial and 
Execution of Charles. 
= i, The Commonwealth.— The Monarchy Abolished and Commonwealth Established— 
is J; Cromwell and the Protectorate. 

§ S Charles II. — The Restoration — Plague and Fire — Habeas Corpus Act — 
•o Popish and Itye House Plots. 

James II. — Monmouth's Rebellion — Attempt to Restore Catholicism — The 

Revolution. 
William and Mary. — Rebellion in Ireland — War with France and Peace oi 

Ryswick — Bill of Rights — English Constitution. 
Anne. — War of Spanish Succession and Peace of Utrecht — Union of England 
and Scotland — The Augustan Age of English Literature. 

5 . George I. — House of Brunswick — The Elder Pretender — The South Sea 
g ^ Scheme. 

=) H George II. — Walpole and his Policy — War of Austrian Succession and Peace 
o ° of Aix-la-Chapelle — The Younger Pretender — Seven Years' War — 

William Pitt— India. 

George III. — Peace of Paris — Canada — American Revolution — French 
Revolution — Second War with the United States. 

George IV. — Independence of Greece — Catholic Emancipation Act. 

William IV. — Reform Bill of 1832 — Abolition of Slavery. 

Victoria. — Repeal of the Corn Laws — the Navigation Acts — and the Lawi 
c _ against Jews. Passage of Laws disestablishing the Irish Church — 

| £» extending the Elective Franchise — substituting the Ballot for open 

5 •£ voting — and founding a System of Public Schools. Wars with China 

^ <3 and the Opening of Ports — the Crimean War — the Sepoy Rebellion — 

Civcl War iu the United States and the Alabama Claims. 



GENEALOGICAL TABLE. 



SAXON LINE. 



Egbekt. 
Ethelwolf. 



1 » I I I 

Ethelbald. Ethelbert. Ethelred i. Alfred. 



DANISH LINE. 

8WF.YN. 

Canute I. 
I 



Edward the Elder, 



athelstan. Edmund. Edred, 



Harold. 



Edwy. 



Edgar. 



Canute II. 



Edward the Martyr. Ethelred II 



NORMAN LINE. 
William the Conqueror. 



Edmund Ironside. 

Edward the Outlaw. 

I 

Margaret. 



Robert. 



William II. Henry I. Adela. Matilda. 
Stephen. 



Edward 
the Confessor. 



Earl Godwin. 
I 
Harold II. 



Matilda. 
Henry II. 



Union of Saxon and Norman Familie* 



Richard I. 
Cteur de Lion. 



Geoffrey 



Arthur. Eleanor. 

Murdered by John, 



John. 



Henry III. 

I 
Edward I. 

I 
Edward II. 

I 
Edward III. 



GENEALOGICAL TABLE. 



IX 



Edward III. 

I 



Bdward, the 

Black Prince. 

RICHARD II. 



Lionel, Duke 
of Clarence. 

i 

Philippa. 

I 

Mortimer. 

I 



John of Gaunt, 
Duke of Lancaster. 
I 



Edmund, 
Duke of York 



Edmund 

Mortimer, 

Sari of March. 



Anne 
I 



Henry IV. 

Henry v. 

I 

HENRY VI. 



Furl of Richard, 

Somerset. Karl of 
Cambridge. 



Duke of 



Edward IV. 



Union of second and Somerset. 
Richard. fourth branches. | 
_J ' 

I 
Richard III. 



Edward V. 



Richurd. 



Elizabeth. 



The Smothered Prince*. 



Union of York 
ami Lancaster. 



Margaret. 



Henry VII 



Henry VIII. 



MABY, 

Daughter of 
Catherine 

Of Aragon. 



Elizabeth, 
Daughter of 

Anne Boleyn, 



Edward VI. 

S071 Of 

Jane 
Seymour. 



Margaret Mary, 
married 
James IV. | 

of Scotland. Frances. 

| I 

James V. Jane Grey. 
I 
Mary, 

Queen of' Scots. 

James I. 

I 



Charles I. 



Elizabeth. 



Charles II. 



Mary. 



Anne. 



James II. 



(James. X 
Charles. / 



The Pretenders. 
Union of Stuart and Nassau. 



Mary 

married 

Prince of Natsau 

William III. 



Sophia 
married 
Elector of 
Hanover. 

George I. 

George II. 
I 

Prince of Wale*. 

George IIL 



Geobob IV. 



William IV. 



Duke of Kent. 

I 
Victoria. 



THE BRITISH EMPIRE. 



The British Empire includes the Kingdom of Great Britain 
and Ireland and all its colonies and dependencies, having a 
population of more than 250,000,01)0, and an area of more than 
8,300,000 square miles. 

EUROPEAN. 

The British Islands, the Channel Islands, Malta, Gozo, and 
Gibraltar. 

ASIATIC. 

British India, Ceylon, Aden, Malacca, Singapore, Prince ot 
Wales' Island, Hong-Kong, Sarawak, Labuan, and Cyprus. 

AUSTRALIAN. 

Australia, Tasmania, Norfolk Islands, New Zealand, Chat- 
ham Islands, and the Fiji Islands. 

AFRICAN. 

Cape Colony, Natal, Gambia and the Gold Coast, Sierra 
Leone; the single Islands — Ascension, Mauritius, and St. 
Helena ; and the groups — Seychelles, Amiraute, and the 
Chagos. 

NORTH AMERICAN. 

British America including Nova Scotia and Cape Breton 
Island, New Brunswick, Prince Edward's Island, Quebec, On- 
tario, Manitoba, British Columbia, the Northwest Territory, 
and Newfoundland, all, except the last named, being united 
under the title of the Dominion of Canada ; Balize, and th« 
Bermudas. 

SOUTH AMERICAN. 

British Guiana, and the Falkland Islands. 

WEST INDIAN. 

Jamaica, the Bahamas, Trinidad, and most cf the Lesser An- 
tilles. 

(10) 



CHAPTER I. 

The Britons. We know little of the early history 
of Brilain. From rude relics found in the soil, we 
conclude that the island was once inhabited by a race 
of savages who disappeared before a superior people 
that, at some unknown period, crossed from the Conti- 
nent of Europe. These Celtic invaders were found in 
sole possession when the Romans first visited the island, 
about half a century before Christ. They were a bar- 
barous people, divided into numerous tribes, whose 
principal employment was war. Their weapons were 
spears and broadswords, with blades of bronze, and 
they also used wicker shields covered with skins, and 
chariots armed with projecting scythes, in which, drawn 
by trained horses, they rode at full speed into the very 
midst of their foes. Their homes were huts and caves in 
the forests which, at that time, covered nearly all the land. 
They subsisted upon their flocks and herds, and the 
products of the chase, and wore little clothing, pointing 
their bodies blue, and covering them with hideous tat- 
tooes to make themselves terrible to their enemies in 
battle. But those occupying the southwestern corner 
of the island were superior to the rest, having been 
visited, from time immemorial, by other nations, for the 
tin found in the mines of that section. Even the mer- 
chants of ancient Tyre and Sidon, occasionally sent 
ships to barter Phcrnician wares for British tin. 



12 THE BRITONS. 

Druidism. The Britons professed a religion called 
Druidism. They worshiped one Supreme Being, of 
whom they had no just conception, and numerous in- 
ferior deities, to whom they offered human sacrifices. 
The heavenly bodies occupied a prominent place among 
these inferior deities. They believed in a future state 
of existence, in which rewards and punishments were 
meted out according as men's conduct had been good or 
bad in this life. Much of the power and all the 
learning were confined to the priests, called 
Druids. They made the laws, administered 
justice, and were the sole instructors of the young. 
Nothing was committed to writing, and education 
consisted in receiving from the lips of the Druids 
and committing to memory a great number of verses 
on Geography, Astronomy, and Religion. The priests 
performed their mystic rites in temples, each formed of a 
circular row of huge stones standing upright with the 
altar in the centre, open to the heavens above, 
and located in groves of their sacred tree, the oak. 
Remains of these temples still exist in various places, 
the most notable at Stonehengo on Salisbury Plain. 
Their most holy place was the Island of Mona, now 
Anglesea, just across the Menai Strait. Their most 
solemn festival occurred on the sixth day of the moon 
nearest the tenth of March, their New Year's day, 
when the chief Druid, clothed in white robes, with 
a golden knife cut the sacred mistletoe from the oak to 
which it chins:. There were three other festivals of 
special interest to the English people, since to them 
may be traced the festivities of May-day, Mid-summer- 



TILE KOMAN CONQUEST. 13 

eve, and Hiirvest-hoiue, celebrating respectively the 
sowing of the seed, the ripening of the crops, and the 
gathering of the harvests. 

First Soman Invasion. Britain, lying to the west 
of the continent, and separated from it by quite an ex- 
panse of water, was too insignificant to excite either en- 
mity or cupidity, and long escaped the notice of Konie, 
the "Mistress of the World." It was only when the tide 
of Roman conquest had reached the western shore of 
Europe, that the scheme of its addition to the Empire 
was first conceived. Julius Caesar, having nearly com- 
pleted the subjugation of the Gauls, crossed the Channel 
with two legions, and landed just beyond the clhTs of 
Dover, B.C. 55. The Britons, warned of the purpose of 
Caesar, had gathered in large numbers to oppose his land- 
ing. Though they were driven back, and repeatedly 
beaten, so stubborn were they, that Caesar did not ven- 
ture far from the coast, and was glad to accept their of- 
fers of peace and return to Gaul. But the next year he 
returned with a much larger force, five legions or thirty 
thousand foot soldiers, and two thousand horse. Having 
conquered the country for some distance beyond the 
Thames, compelling the chiefs to pay tribute and give 
hostages, Caesar again withdrew from British soil. 

Second Roman Invasion. Occupied with weightier 
matters, the Romans soon practically forgot their distant 
and worthless conquest, and the Britons were left for 
aearly a century to take care of themselves. During 
iris period, a growing trade and a better acquaintance 
with their neighbors on the continent, had done some- 
thing towards their civilization, attracting the attention 



14 THE ROMAN CONQUEST. 

of the Emperor Claudius, who began, in the year of 
our Lord 43, a seeond and more difficult conquest. 

Caractacus. Caractacus, the most important of 
the chiefs at that time, putting himself at the head 
of the inland tribes, for eight years held the Romans at 
bay, when he was captured and taken to Rome to 
grace the triumph of his captor. "Is it possible 
that a people possessed of so much magnificence 
at home could covet my humble cottage in 
Britain," exclaimed the wondering barbarian as he 
gazed on the glories of Rome ! His kingly bearing 
won the respect of the Emperor, who restored him to 
liberty, and this is the last we hear of the noble Briton. 

Slaughter of the Druids. The Druids possessed 
almost unlimited power over the people, and this 
power they had used to the utmost, to arouse them 
to bitter hostility to Roman authority. Suetonius, 
the Roman general and governor, resolving to strike 
a decisive blow, in the year 01, crossed the strait 
of Menai and landed on the sacred shore of Mona. 
For a moment even Roman soldiers faltered, as they 
listened to the shrieks and imprecations of frantic priests 
and priestesses, and beheld the host of painted war- 
riors gathered to defend their altars; then pressing 
resolutely forward, this stronghold of British supersti- 
tion and British power was soon in their possession, and 
Druidism received a fatal blow in the slaughter of its 
priests, and the destruction of its groves and temples. 

Boadicea. During the absence of Suetonius a fresh 
insurrection broke out under Boadicea, widow of the King 
of the Icenians. Stung to madness by shameful abuse, 






THE ROMAN CONQUEST. 15 

wnen protesting against the seizure of all her wealth by 
Roman officials, she went from tribe to tribe exciting 
the warriors to phrensy with the story of her wrongs. 
Under her lead they suddenly fell upon the Roman 
settlements, and seventy thousand soldiers and citizens 
were put to the sword. Suetonius hurried back from 
Mona to wreak a terrible vengeance on the Britons in 
arms. In a great battle fought near London, eighty 
thousand warriors sealed with their blood their devo- 
tion to their country, and the spirited queen, unwilling 
to survive the slaughter of her people and the destruc- 
tion of her hopes, put an end to her own life. 

The Roman Conquest. But the Britons were still 
unsubdued, and it remained for Agricola (who became 
Governor in the year 78), by the practice of justice and 
humanity as w r ell as soldierly skill , to reconcile them to 
Roman authority. Under the firm but liberal policy of 
Agricola and his successors, the Britons rapidly improved. 
They gave up their heathenish rites and savage customs, 
and adopted the manners, dress, and, to some extent, 
the language of the Romans. They became peaceful 
and industrious. Wide stretches of gloomy forests 
gave place to fields of waving grain ; and the mines of 
tin, lead, and iron began to be worked in earnest. Their 
surplus products found a ready market abroad, giving 
rise to a moderate but increasing commerce. The con- 
struction by the Romans of a system of public roads 
not only facilitated the transportation of troops to 
needed points, but hastened the development of the 
country and the civilization of its inhabitants. A 
wall of solid stone, twelve feet high and eight feet thick, 



H> THE SAXON CONQUEST. 

running from the mouth of the Tyne to the Solway Firth. 
a distance of sixty-eight miles, was built by the Emperoi 
Severus to protect the Britons from the incursions of 
the Scots and Picts, "vild and warlike tribes occupying 
the highlands of Caledonia. Rome continued in un- 
disturbed possession of Britain until the year 420, when 
bhe recalled her soldiers to repel the Goths, who were 
pouring from their German homes into Italy in vast 
numbers, threatening even Rome itself. 

The Saxon Conquest. The Romans had no sooner 
left the island than the Scots and Picts, boldly crossing 
the wall of Severus, renewed their ravages in the 
northern districts. The Britons, weakened by long 
subjection to Rome, were unable to defend themselves ; 
and, after a vain appeal to the Emperor Ilonorius for 
help, called to their aid the Saxons, Angles, and Jutes. 

These were fierce people inhabiting the peninsula of 
Jutland and the country around the mouths of the Elbe 
and Weser rivers, who, roaming about the waters of the 
North and Baltic seas in their pirate boats, had long 
been the scourge of all the adjoining coasts. They en- 
tered Britain under the command of their brave chief- 
tains, Hengist and Horsa, in the year 449, and quickly 
compelled the northern marauders to retire to their 
native highlands. 

But, attracted by the mildness of the climate and the 
beauty and fertility of the country, and finding, in con- 
nection with the promised reward, a pretext for a quar- 
rel, they soon turned their arms against the Britons 
themselves. The latter, compelled to fight in defence 
of their homes, gradually recovered their ancient valor. 
For a century and a half the struggle for mastery in 



THE SAXON CONQUEST. 17 

the island went on, fresh hordes of Germans pouring 
in, from time to time, to the help of their countrymen. 

The battle of Chester, fought in the year 607, estab- 
ished, beyond a doubt, the supremacy of the invaders. 
The districts still occupied by the natives being severed 
one from another, could no longer act in concert, and 
the struggle, though lingering, ceased to have a national 
character. The brave but hapless Britons, beaten on 
all sides, and pursued with lire and sword, at last found 
a safe retreat among the mountain fastnesses of Wales 
and Cornwall. There, animated by a burning love 
of liberty, they continued in almost unbroken war for 
six hundred years, defying the whole power of Eng- 
land to subdue them; and there, their descendants, 
the Welsh, live to-day, a hardy, vigorous race, and at 
one with the English, who have long since shared with 
them the blessings of a common country. 

During the Roman occupation, Christianity had sup- 
planted the native religion. The Latin language, too, 
had gradually come into use, especially among the upper 
classes and in the larger towns. The entire disappear- 
ance of Christianity, and both the Latin and native lan- 
guages, attests the thoroughness of the German or An- 
glo-Saxon conquest. A few slaves held for the pleasure 
or profit of the conquerors were all that were left of the 
native population. 

King Arthur. Of the many heroic Britons, who 
struggled against the German conquest, the most fa- 
mous, whose name has come down to us, is Arthur, chief 
of one of the tribes in the West. But so much of fable 
has been woven into the story of this patriot Briton and 
Ms sixty "Knights of the Round Table," that we can 



18 THE SAXON CONgUEST. 

only say with confidence, that such :i prince lived and 
bravely fought the enemies of his country. 

The Heptarchy. The conquerors gradually estab- 
lished separate kingdoms as they won new territory, 
each having its independent king. Seven of these. 
from their greater prominence, have been called, in 
history, the Heptarchy.* After the Saxons had be 
come firmly established in their new homes, and the 
sharpness of the struggle with the Britons had begun 
to decline, jealousy and ambition for pre-eminence 
involved them in Avars with one .•mother. Constant 
changes, therefore, took place in the number and 
boundaries of the kingdoms. The stronger gradually 
absorbed the weaker, until Wessex, under its vigorous 
king Egbert, brought them all under one government 
in the year 827. 

Introduction of Christianity. Britain first became 
Christian under Rome, but how or when is not known. 
Possibly, a Christian soldier in a Roman legion told the 
story ol' the Cross at a native fireside, or some name- 
Less but devoted priest, going on a mission to heathen 
Britain, achieved a conquest under the banners of the 
Cross, more glorious than that o\' Roman arms. St. Al- 
ban is recorded to have suffered martyrdom as early 
as the year 304. With the advent of the Anglo-Saxons 



* Kent, or Cmuia, was founded by Hengist,in 457. South Saxony, or Su« 
sox, by Ella, in 190. Wkst Saxony, or Wos^ox., by Cerdic, in 519. East Six- 
on voi Kssrx. by Erei'W m,in5-'7. XouTHUMitKULANi) (North of the Uuinber) 
by Ida, in M7. East Anglia, comprising Norfolk (North folks ) and Suffolk 
(South folks ) by Uffu, in 5T.">. Mkkcia (Marchmen, or people on fie march 01 
frontier ) by Cridda, in 68a. 



THE SAXON CONQUEST. 19 

the Christian religion disappeared, and, for a century 
and a half, Britain remained under a paganism more 
debasing than that of the Druids. 

Christianity was introduced, a second time, by Augus- 
tiiu'* and a hand of forty monks from Home, in the yeai 
597. Ethelbert, king of Kent, who married Bertha, 
a Christian lady, and daughter of the king of Paris, 
was the first convert. Ilis people followed his exam- 
ple and accepted Christianity. Augustine became 
Archbishop of Canterbury, the head of the church of 
England, and his successors have retained their supe- 
riority ever since. Ethelbert's daughter Ethelburh, 
married Edwin, king of Northumbria, and through her 
influence and that of her priest Paulinus, Edwin and 
his people were converted. The other kingdoms 
became Christian during the next century. 

Anglo-Saxon Religion. The principal deity of the 
Anglo-Saxons was Woden, the God of war, from whom 
all their royal families claimed descent; the next in rank 
being Thor, or Thunder, the God of storms. Each day 
of the week was dedicated to a particular deity, from 
whom it received its name — a name it still continues 



♦The venerable Bedc, our principal authority for early English history, 
tells how Christianity was now introduced into Britain. Gregory, a priest, one 
day saw in the market-place of Rome, some very beautiful boys for sale, and 
asked who they were and whence they came. He was told they were heathen 
boys from the Isle of Britain. He then asked the name of their nation. 
" Jingles," was the answer. "Angles," said Gregory, " they have the faces of 
Angtls, and they ought to be made fellow-heirs of the Angels in Heaven. But 
•f what tribe of Angles are they?" "Of Deira," was the reply. "Deira!" 
said Gregory, " then they must be delivered from the wrath of God. And what 
Is the name of their king?" ".JElla." "ASUaHhen Alleluia shall be sung in 
his land." Sometime afterwards Gregory became pope and sent Augustine 
and forty other monks to convert the English. 



20 THE SAXON CONQUEST. 

to bear.* Like barbarous tribes in general, making the 
future existence a realization of their highest ideal of 
the present life, they filled their Valhalla or Heaven 
with scenes of war, where happy Saxons would live for- 
ever, occupying the days in the slaughter of their ene- 
mies, and the nights in wild carousals of victory. 

Anglo-Saxon Government. The king was assisted in 
the government by a great council, called Witenagemot, 
or "Assembly of the Wise," composed of the great no- 
bles, the Ealdormen or Earls, and, after the introduc- 
tion of Christianity, Bishops and Abbots. This council 
met regularly at Christmas, Easter and Whitsuntide, 
and on special occasions when summoned. At the death 
of the king it assembled to elect his successor, who 
was taken from the royal family, but was not always the 
next in line. Besides the Earls, who acted as judges 
and rulers in their districts, there was an inferior class 
of nobles, called Thanes, men who had risen to nobility 
by personal attendance on the king. The Churls were 
freemen of the middle and lower classes, tho lowest 
class of all being the Serfs, or slaves, who composed 
about two-thirds of the inhabitants. 



•Sunday, (Sun's day), or day for tho worship of the sun. Monday 
(Moon's day) or day for the worship of the moon. Tiesday (Tiw's day) 
the day of tho Dark God Tiw, to meet whom was death. Wednesday 
(Wodeu's day) the day of Woden, the War God. Thursday (Thor's day) the 
day of Thor, the God of storms. Friday (Frea's day) the day of Frea, tin 
goddess of peace and fruitfulness. Saturday (Saturn's day) the day of Sat* 
urn, a God borrowed from Roman Mythology. 



CHAPTER H. 
The Saxon Line, 827 to 1017-190 years. 



EGBEET. 
ETHELWOLF. 
ETHELBALD. 
ETHELBEET. 
ETHELEED I. 
ALFEED THE GEEAT. 
EDWAED THE ELDEE. 


ATHELSTAN. 

EDMUND I. 

EDEED. 

EDWY. 

EDGAE. 

EDWAED THE MAETYE. 

ETHELEED II. 


Egbert — S27 


to 83 


7 — 10 years. Saxon. 



The Danish Invasions. Egbert called the country 
England from the Angles, the most powerful of the 
three tribes. This is generally regarded as the begin- 
ning of the English monarchy. No sooner were 
the different kingdoms united under one government 
and at peace among themselves, than a new danger 
appeared from without. Inroads began to be made by 
the Danes, a piratical people of Denmark, who, descend- 
ing upon the eastern coast during the summer, would 
load their boats with plunder, and retire tor the winter 
to their strongholds on the shores of the North and 
Baltic Seas. They came year after year in ever increas- 
ing numbers, until at last, from pirate bands in search 
of plunder, they grew into invading armies bent on 
conquest. They planted themselves at various points 
along the coast, and waged perpetual war with the 
English in the interior. 



22 



EGBERT. 



They even colonized the coast of Ireland, forcing 
the inhabitants back into the interior. From the 
reign of Egbert to that of Ethelred the Unready, a 
period of nearly two hundred years, the struggle 
between Saxon and Dane went on, ending as we shall 
see a little later, in the establishment of Danish rule. 

Egbert was succeeded by Ethelwolf, a good and pious 
king, who was followed by his four sons in succession. 
Ethelbald, who died lamented by his people; Ethel- 
bert, a vicious and unworthy king; Ethelred I, a brave 
soldier, under whom Alfred learned the art of war, and 
whom he succeeded. 

Alfred the Great, 871 to 901 — 30 years. Saxon. 

War with the Danes. During the early part of his 
reign, Alfred was engaged in constant warfare with the 
Danes. Defeated in battle after battle by the overwhelm- 
ing number of his foes, he was compelled, for a time, to 
hide in a secluded spot in the swamps and forests of 
Somersetshire, still known as Athelney, or Prince's 
Island.* Wishiug to learn the strength and arrange- 
ment of the Danish camp, he presented himself before 
Guthrum, the Danish king, disguised as a minstrel. 

* Alfred, while a refugee, found temporary shelter in a herdsman's cottago. 
The herdsman's wife one day set him to watch some cakes that were baking 
over the fire; but Alfred, intent on mending his bow, let the cakes burn, and 
was sharply reproved by the indignant woman when she returned. The 
whole story may be a mere legend or come from an ancient ballad. There 
are two old Latin verses that quaintly express the good woman's alleged 
i«proof: — 

" Urere quos cernis panes gyrare moraris, 
Quum illinium gaudes hos manducare calentes." 

" There, don't you see the cakes on fire? Then wherefore turn them not? 
You are glad enough to eat them when they are piping hot." 



ALFRED THE GREAT. 23 

For several days he amused the unsuspicious Danes 
with harp and song, when, having gained the desired 
information, he disappeared as mysteriously as he had 
come. Putting himself at the head of his trusted fol- 
lowers, he made a sudden attack on the Danish camp 
and gained a signal victory. 

By treaty, Guthrum and his followers received bap- 
tism, withdrew from Wessex, Alfred's native kingdom, 
and settled in the eastern districts as nominal vassals 
of the English king. Peace was broken after an inter- 
val of ten years by the arrival of Hastings, the famous 
sea-king, with a great fleet. Alfred once more took 
the held, and by his skill and genius the Danish fleet 
was captured, its army routed, and Hastings compelled 
to take refuge in France. 

Alfred's Government. Peace being restored, Alfred 
devoted the few remaining years of his life to the bet- 
ter organization of his kingdom and the elevation of 
his people. He invited wise men of other nations to 
his court, and founded schools of learning, among them 
the University of Oxford. He translated into the 
English tongue, portions of the Scriptures, the history 
of Bede, the early English chronicler, and Latin works 
of merit, and thus gave an impulse to learning. He 
compiled a code of laws, chiefly from the systems of his 
predecessors, containing principles of the greatest 
value in modern jurisprudence. He organized a mili- 
tia, and divided the country into counties, hundreds, and 
tens, after the old Saxon system, making each section 
responsible for the good behavior of its inhabitants. So 
complete and successful was his system of government, 
that violence and disorder disappeared from the land. 



24 ALFRED THE GREAT. 

The boast is handed down to us that gold and jewels, 
left unguarded by the roadside, would remain untouched 
by dwellers or passers-by. As a soldier, statesman, 
and scholar, Alfred has never been surpassed by any 
English sovereign. 

Alfred's Successors. lie was succeeded, in order, 
by Edward the Elder, who first assumed the title of 
King of England, — Athelslan, a good and valiant king, 
who caused the Bible to be translated into Anglo-Saxon, 
and a copy placed in every church in the kingdom, — ■ 
Edmund, who was stabbed at his own table by the ban- 
ished robber, Leolf, — Edwy, whose romantic marriage 
with his beautiful cousin Elgiva brought upon both the 
vengeance of Dunstan the Abbot, Elgiva dying by vio- 
lence, and Edwy with grief,' — Edgar the proud but 
peaoeable, — Edward the Martyr, young and promising, 
who was killed at the gate of Corfe Castle, by order of 
his step-mother, — and then by Ethelred the Unready. 

Massacre of Danes. Ethelred, afraid to fight the 
Danes in an open and manly way, purchased peace by 
promising to pay them an annual tribute, called Dane- 
gelt, raised by a tax on land, the first on record in 
England. This tax proving very unpopular, Ethelred 
planned a massacre o\' all the Danes in the kingdom as 
the easiest way of getting rid of both Danegelt and 
Danes. 

The Danish Conquest. This massacre took place on 
the Festival of St. Brice, in the year 1002, and so 
enraged Sweyn, king of Denmark, whose sister, a 
hostage of peace, was among the slain, that he assem- 
bled a large army, transported it to the English coast, 
and commenced the work of Vengeance. Through and 



TUE DANISH CONQUEST. 25 

through the kingdom of Wessex went the furious Dane, 
"lighting his war beacons as he wont." Leaving behind 
him only the bodies of the dead and the ashes of their 
dwellings. Ethelred fled to France, aud Sweyn became 
kino- of England, establishing the Danish authority 
in the year 1013. Sweyn died before coronation, and 
for a short time, the Saxon line was restored in the 
peison of Ethelred, and then in that of his son Edmund, 
called Lrouside. Between the latter and Canute, son of 
Sweyn, there was a short and furious war to decide 
Which should be king, ending in the division of the 
country between them. The death ot' Edmund soon 
•lfter, led to the submission of all England to the rule ol 
Canute. 

Comparison between Saxon and Danish Conquests. 
A brief comparison should be made between the Saxon 
and Danish conquests. The Saxons and Danes were 
of the same Teutonic stock, and in their Grermau homes 
spoke the same language with dialectical differences. 
They worshiped the same heathen gods, and had essen- 
tially the same laws and customs. The Saxons had, 
long before their invasion of Britain, roamed about the 

■ 

waters of the German ocean in fleets of black pirate- 
boats, swarming up all the rivers and scouring all the 
coasts in search of plunder, it was while they were on 
just such a piratical raid, that the Britons first obtained 
their help against the Scots and Picts. 

So clouds {>{' Danish pirates hovered about the Eng- 
lish coast before the Danish invasion, plundering their 
somewhat civilized and christianized Saxon kindred. 
The Saxons were a century and a half in com- 
pleting their conquest, the Danes somewhat longer in 



2G THE DANISH CONQUEST. 

effecting theirs. There was the same savage ferocity 
in battle, and the same ruthless slaughter oi' the con- 
quered. The Danes regarded the Saxons as renegades 
from their ancienl faith, and so it was, in either ease, 
a uar of heathenism on Christianity. 

But the final results were widely different. There 
was nothing in common between Briton and Saxon. 
and the war they waged was, on the part of the latter, 
one oi' extermination. But there was much in com- 
mon between Saxon and Dane, and they could easily 
assimilate. The barbarism of the conquering Dane 
yielded io the civilization oi' the conquered Saxon, 
so that, in process ot" time, the former became, as it 
were, transformed into the latter. 



CHAPTER HI. 
Danish Line, 1017 to 1042 — 25 years. 

CANUTE THE GREAT. HABDICANUTE. 

HAEOLD. 

Vaunts the (.rent, 1017 to 1035— 18 years. Danish. 

The Reign of Canute. Canute well deserved to he 
called the Great, lie enlarged his kingdom, then com- 
prising England and Denmark, by bringing under his 
sway Norway and Sweden. But his chief claim to 
greatness rests not on his exploits in war, but his 
achievements in peace. Coming to England from his 
native Denmark a tierce and blood-thirsty savage, he 
became in time a good, wise, and great king, * impar- 
tial in his sway over Saxon and Dane. Peace and the 
welcome sounds o\' industry soon took the place of wai 
and its horrid din. By -wise and popular laws, rigidly 
but impartially executed, he united and harmonized the 
discordant kingdoms, and healed the animosities of the 



•His oourtiers, wishing to Hatter him by exalting his power, onoe told him 
thathe was lord alike or sea and 'ami. and would beobeyed by both. Wishing 
to show them how foolish as well as impions these praises were, lie gave orders 
dint his throne should bo oarried to the seashore at Bonthampton, and sit 

down upon it while the tide was coming in. " Now." said he. " O sea, Iain thy 
lord; oome no nearer, presume not to we' my feel I '' Phe waves, ol course, 
Instead of attending to him, rolled on. till they Rowed around hi* throne and 
washed over his I'eer. Turning to his attendants, he hade them remember thai 
theieis only One who can say to the deep, "S > far Shalt thon go, and no further; 
and here shall thy proud waves be staved." He afterwards bung up !<i» 
QTOWn over the altar in W inchrster Cathedral, and never wore it *%ala. 



28 CANUTE THE GREAT. 

different races, laying, for the first time, the founda- 
tions of national unity and greatness. 

Canute and the Christian Church. Canute's treats 
mcntof the Christian church is worthy of notice. The 
barbarous Danes had been merciless in the destruction 
of churches and monasteries, and in the slaughter of 
their inmates ; and, in consequence, all the powers of 
the church had been arrayed against them. Canute, 
on coming to power, instead of taking vengeance on 
the Christian church, yielded his heart to its holy faith, 
and became its friend and patron. He re-built and re- 
endowed the religious houses which he and his lather had 
burned, and even protected Christian pilgrims journey- 
ing to Rome, from the robbers of the Alps. What true 
grandeur in his resolve "to rule justly and piously his 
•realms and subjects, and to administer just judgment 
to all!" He died in 1035, lamented by all his people, 
and was succeeded by his son Harold, called Harefoot, 
whose only claim to fame was his swiftness in running ; 
and then by his second son Hardicanute, or Canute II., 
who died of intemperance after a reign of two years. 
The people, disgusted with their later Danish rulers, 
then called to the throne Edward the Confessor, brother 
of Edmund Ironside, and son of Ethelred II., thus 
restoring the Saxon line. 

Edward the Confessor, 1042 to 1006. — 25 Years. 

Edward had opent all his early years in exile in Xor- 
aiandy, and thus naturally had become Norman in his 
tastes and habits. On coming to the English throne 
he surrounded himself with Norman companions, whom 
he appointed to the principal offices of church and 



EDWARD THE CONFESSOR. 29 

state, greatly to the discontent of the English people. 
But he had the wisdom to appoint, as his principal 
adviser, Godwin, Karl of Wessex, an Englishman, and 
the ablest statesman in the kingdom. Edward being 
ill feeble health, Godwin became the virtual ruler of 
England, and by his skill and wisdom kept peace be- 
tween the jealous English and the haughty Norman. 
Once exiled, he was soon recalled; and at his death, 
which occurred shortly after his return, his son Harold, 
who had inherited all his father's greatness, took his 
place at the head of the affairs of state. 

Character of Edward. Edward was a wise and pious 
king, and caused England to be governed by just and 
equal laws. For generations afterwards the people, 
when ground down by tyranny, would look back with 
longings to the " good laws of Edward." His time was 
chiefly spent in deeds of charity and in the exercises 
of religion, and he attained to a purity and sanctity of 
character that, about a hundred years after his death, 
placed his name among those of the Saints in the 
calendar of the church, and that have hallowed his 
memory, even to this day. Edward was popularly 
believed to have the miraculous power to cure the scrof- 
ula, or "king's evil," by a touch, — a strange supersti- 
tion in connection with the sovereign of England that 
found credence among the masses of the people, even 
down to the reign of Queen Anne. Edward had mar- 
ried a daughter of Godwin, but died without heirs in 
the year 1066. On his death-bed he named Harold as 
his successor, and the Witan the same day elected him 
as kino:. 

William, Duke of Normandy. William, Duke of 



80 EDWARD THE CONFESSOR. 

Normandy, had been planning for years to take the 
English throne at the death {>{' Edward. He affirmed 
that Edward, with whom he had been educated at his 
father's oourt, had even promised him the kingdom, 
and that Harold, when onoe wrecked on the ooast of 
Normandy and thrown into William's power, had swoio 
to support his ela'nn. However this may be, OU hearing 
of Harold's eleotion, William, "speechless with rage," 
at once commenced the most vigorous preparations to 
enforoe his ela'nn. lie built a great fleet, and gathered 
about him an army oi' sixty thousand knights, the 
flower of the chivalry oi' Normandy : and having ftrst 
obtained the Pope's sanction to the enterprise, 
crossed the channel, and landed on the coast oi' England, 
tin* last of September. 

Battle of Hastings, A. 1). 1066. William's merci- 
less ravages oi' the adjoining country brought Harold 
to battle at Senlao,* near Hastings, about the middle of 
Ootober. After a desperate struggle of nine hours' 
duration, just at dusk, Harold tell, pierced to the brain 
with an arrow, and his broken and panie-strieken army 
tied away during the night. William entered London in 
triumph, two months later, and was crowned, on 
Christmas day, at Westminster. This is called, hi 
history, the Conquest. * 



* in commemoration o( his victory, William bail! :t Monastery called Battle 
Abbey, iiii (he very spot where Harold's standard bad been planted. Although 
tin* i ,ta long tinoe paaaed away, Its suooeasor, m nuns, reminds the traveller 

of the (amOUS battle of Basting*. 



CHAPTER IV. 



Norman Lino, 1066 to 1151 — SS Years. 



WILLIAM I., thfl Conqueror. HENKY I.. Beauclerk. 

WILLIAM II., Rufus. STEPHEa. 



William the Conqueror— 1066 to 1087. — 21 Wars. 

Rolf, the Dane. William was descended from Rolf, 
■ Danish pirate, who, in 912, just after the time oi Al- 
fred the Great, had planted himself with his pirate crew, 
.it the mouth of the river Seine. The king of France, 
being unable to dislodge him, finally, by treaty, gave 
him his daughter in marriage and a title to Normandy, 
in return for which Rolf agreed to receive baptism mid 
acknowledge himself a vassal of France. In process 
of time, the same change befell the Danes in France 
that had befallen them in England; they were absorbed 
by the more civilized people among whom they settled. 
As in England the Dane became an Englishman, so in 
France he became a Frenchman. 

Revolt of the English. Soon after William's acces- 
sion to power, and during his temporary absence in 
Normandy, there was a wide-spread revolt of the 
English. The signal for the rising was the appearance 
on the eoast, ot' a Danish tleet designed to restore 
Danish authority to the island. With a heavy bribe, 
the crafty William induced the Danish commanders to 



32 WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR. 

abandon (heir purpose and return to Denmark, lit 
then turned upon the rebels in arms with a ferocity he 
only could show, lie ravaged the sea-hoard so that no 
Dane should find either foothold or plunder in future, 
and laid waste with tire and sword the old district )f 
Deira, between the Ilumber and the Tees, the sourc* 
and centre of tin' rebellion. So complete was the de- 
vastation, that, for the space of sixty miles north of 
York, the whole district remained tor half a century 
without an inhabitant, a barren waste, and marked only 
by blackened ruins. One hundred thousand human 
beings, who had tied to the woods at William's coming, 
crept back to the ashes of their homes, only to die of 
starvation. Although it was mid-winter when the 
cruel work was done, the ruthless king started at once 
for the West, where the revolt was still formidable. 
Through an unbroken wilderness, covered with drifts 
of snow, and crossed by swollen streams, the starving 
army toiled painfully on, with the tireless king ever 
at the head. Chester* was reached at last, and with 
its fall the rebellion virtually came to an end. 

Confiscation of English Estates. Then commenced, 
under the direction of the revengeful king, a wholesale 
confiscation of rebel estates. These were distributed 

• Chester is one of the most interesting as well as one of the oldest towns in 
England, li Bhows more plainly than any other the marks of the Romaq 
occupation, it is the only town in England that b as maintained its walls in 
thf ir original form, the foundations of which were lad by the Romans them- 
selves, its Ion;; and Interesting history is indicated by the following inBorip 
tions, made from l ime to time upon its walls : 
A. D. 61. Walls built by Romans. 

7;. Marius, King of the Bl itons, extended the walls. 
607. The Britons defeated by the Saxons. 
90»>. Rebuilt by daughter of Allied the Great 
1398. Henry 01" Lancaster mustered his troops under the walls. 
l*t&- The Parliamentary forces made a breach in the walls. 



WILLIAM TIIK CONQUEROR. 33 

among the Nornian knights and aobles who had fought 
around William's standard, while their former Saxon 
owners cither found refuge in foreign lands, or, form- 
ing in hostile hands, waged a desultory warfare with 
their Norman conquerors. Hereward, a Saxon noble* 
retired to the isle of Ely, whore, protected by almost 
impassable swamps, he long defied the Norman power. 
But William, building a causeway across the swamps, 
finally forced the valiant Saxon to surrender. 

The Feudal System Established. The conquest of 
England now being complete, William turned his at- 
tention to the organization of the government, with a 
view to its security in the future. Normans were put 
into all places of power and trust. The military power 
o\' the government was based on the Feudal system 
that already prevailed in Spain, France, and Germany. 
Under this system, the great nobles were granted al- 
most unlimited power over the persons and property of 
their tenants, on certain conditions, the most impor- 
tant of which was. that they should come to the sup- 
port o\^ the king with all their retainers in time of war. 
These nobles, generally living in strongly fortified cas- 
tles, and constantly surrounded by devoted bodies of 
men-at-arms, thus became petty sovereigns, spending 
their time in the pleasures ot' the chase, or in making 
war on each other, and sometimes on the king himself. 
William erected the Feudal system in England as a 
bulwark to the throne : and such it was as against the 
conquered English. But when the spirit ot' disaffec- 
tion crept into the Norman nobility, thus made powerful 
and independent, the Feudal system became its chief 
danger. 



34 WILLIAM T11E CONQUEROR. 

The Doomsday Book. For the better organization 

of tlio kingdom, and the more certain collection of its 
revenues, he ordered a great survey, the results of 
which were embodied in the "Doomsday Book," show- 
ing the ownership, extent, and productions of all the 
estates in the kingdom. From this register the (Town 
«.lnes were carefully calculated and rigidly collected. 

The Curfew Bell. William established the curfew 
(fire-covering) bell. This was rung from every church- 
tower and monastery in England, at sunset in summer, 
and al eight o'clock in winter, as a signal for the peo- 
ple to cover the tires on the hearth, and retire to rest. 
The law of the curfew had long prevailed in various 
parts of Europe as a safeguard against conflagrations, 
which were frequent and extensive in the wood-built 
tow ns. 

The Norman Language. After the Saxon rebellion, 
Normans had been put into all responsible places, both 
of church and state. Of necessity, therefore, all the 
business of the government and courts of justice, the 
services of the church, except such as regularly em- 
ployed Latin, and the exercises of the schools, were 
conducted in the Norman language. Normau thus 
came largely into use, even among English people ; 
but the English masses still continued to talk in their 
Anglo-Saxon tongue. It is said that William tried, 
though in vain, to learn the Anglo-Saxon language, 
that he might be the better qualified to govern hia 
v\ hole people. 

Character of William the Conqueror. Reserved, 
haughty, severe in his rule, and ruthless in his 
revenge, "stark to baron or rebel." but " mild to thorn 



WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR. 35 

that loved God," ho inspired a mingled sense of respect 
and awe in all about him. This sense was heightened, 
do doubt, by a consciousness of his great physical 
strength, no ordinary man being aide to Bwing his bat- 

tle-axe or bend his how. There was a grandeur about 
the Conqueror that belongs to no other English king, 
as manifest in his fearless humanity as in his dauntless 
ferocity. It', with a ferocity that tinds few parallels 
in all history, he blotted out rebellious towns, and 
brought the silence of death upon offending dis- 
tricts, with a humanity in striking contrast with the 
spirit of the age, he formally abolished capital punish- 
ment, and but one person suffered death for crime dur- 
ing his whole reign. 

To gratify his love o( solitude and his fondness for 
the chase, he laid waste an extensive tract in Hamp- 
shire, reaching from Winchester to the sea, driving out 
its inhabitants and burning their dwellings and churches. 
Buthe also abolished the slave trade that had long been 
a source of wealth to the merchants of Bristol, and 
became the friend and patron of the Jews, then a hated 
race, allowing them to build dwellings and synagogues 
in all the principal towns. 

He was a true Catholic, and strengthened the church 
by the establishment of ecclesiastical courts, after- 
wards, in the reign of Henry II., the source of so much 
trouble: but he bluntly refused to obey the command of 
the pope to do fealty for his realm. If he removed 
English prelates and abbots, he required of their 
Norman successors the most exemplary lives, and 
instantly dismissed those found unworthy. 



36 WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR 

Although he could not brook opposition, and was 
like a raging lion to all who withstood him, there, 
was one man, Anselm, the good abbot of Bee, in 
whose presence he always became gentle and patient. 

William's end was characteristic. He died on an 
errand of vengeance. He had become corpulent 
during the latter part of his life; and once, when 
ill, had been made the subject of a silly jest on 
the part of the Icing of France. William took it to 
heart, and, on his recovery, commenced to lay waste the 
border lands of France. While riding through the 
burning town of Mantes, his horse reared among the 
hot embers that tilled the road, and he received injuries 
from the pommel of his saddle that terminated, in a 
tew weeks, in his death, at Rouen. lie left the kingdom 
of England to his seeond son William, called Rufiis or 
the Red King, from the color of his hair. To Robert, 
the eldest son, set aside on account of a rebellion in 
which he had engaged, he gave the dukedom of .Nor- 
mandy. William's wife was Matilda,* daughter of the 
Earl of Flanders, through whom the present royal 
house of England traces its descent from Egbert. 

♦Ethelwolf, eldest eon of Egbert, had by his first wife four sons 
Alfred the Great being the youngest. Ilia second wife was Judith, 
daughter oi Charlea the Bald of France. lie was succeeded by his sou 
Blhelbald, who also married Judith, his father's widow. At Ethelbald'a 
death Judith went back to her father's court and eloped with Baldwin, after- 
wards Karl of Flanders. Their si>n married hli'nda, daughter of Alfred the 
Great, and from them sprang Matilda, wife of William the Conqueror. 

The famous "Bayous Tapoetry " was the handiwork of Matilda. This 
was a piece Of cam a- sixty-eight yards long and nineteen inches wide, on 
which were embroidered in wool, scenes and figures, giving a complete 
pictorial history of the Conquest. 



WILLIAM II. ,')7 

William II. I0S7 to L100 — 13 years. Norman. 

Rebellion of the Barons. A.t the death of the Con- 
queror, William hastened to England and was crowned 
byLanfranc, Archbishop of Canterbury. A rebellion of 
the Barons in behalf of Robert was suppressed chiefly 
by tin* English, whose aid the king secured by a prom- 
ise of good laws. William then tried by fraud and by 
force to wrest from Robert his French inheritance, buta 
treaty was finally made between them by which Robert 
retained his present possessions, and, in ease of the 
death of either, the survivor inherited his dominions. 
Later in the reign, Robert mortgaged Normandy to the 
king for five years, to raise money to go on the First 
Crusade. William was twice engaged in hostilities with 
Malcolm, king of Scotland, forcing the latter to ac- 
knowledge him as his feudal superior. 

Character of William II. The Red King had a strong 
will and great persona] courage, hut he was rapacious, 
prodigal, and licentious. He kept his principal minister, 
Flambard, busy devising ways and means to increase the 
royal revenue. The baronage was loaded with feudal 
obligations, and even the church was robbed of its wealth 
as well as rights. He refused to till vacant sees and 
abbeys, that he might use their incomes. The see of 
Canterbury was vacant from the death of Lanfranc, in 
1089, till 1093, when the king being dangerously ill and 
conscience-smitten, appointed i\u x good and learned 
Anselm to the vacancy. On his recovery, the Red King 
returned to his old ways, and Anselm, withstanding for 
a while the royal tyranny and extortion, was compelled 
at last to Leave the kingdom. 



38 WILLIAM II. 

The Red King met with a tragic death while hunting 
in the new forest which his father bad made. He was 
foimd pierced in the breast with an arrow, whethei 
by design or accident was never known. But he 
is supposed to have boon killed by Walter Tyrrol, 
one of the king's party, who immediately fled from tho 
country. He was succeeded by his younger brother 
Henry, Robert the elder brother not having returned 
from thf Holy Land, whither he had gone on a Crusade, 

The Crusades. The reign of William II. marks the 
beginning of tho Crusades. These were military expe- 
iitions, undertaken on a large scale by tho Christian 
aations of Europe, to free tho Holy Land from the rule 
and presence of the Saracen. Christians from all 
countries, since the fourth century, had made Long and 
painful pilgrimages to the Holy Sepulchre at Jerusalem, 
either as a penance for sin, or as a means o( attaining to 
greater piety; hut they had been subjected to such dan- 
gers and indignities from the predatory infidel, that the 
Crusades were undertaken as a religious duty. 

They began in the year 1096, under the lead and 
preaching of a monk named Peter the Hermit (who 
had himself suffered while on a pilgrimage), and eon- 
tinned, at intervals, through a period of two centuries, 
sacrificing, it is computed, two millions oi' lives, and 
leaving the Holy Land still in the hands ol' the Saracen. 

The Benetits of the Crusades. Though failing to 
accomplish their primal object, the Crusades were pro- 
ductive o( great good in other directions. They brought 
the Christian nations into greater harmony with each 
other by uniting them in a common cause, and into im- 
mediate contact with the East, making them familiar with 



WILLIAM II. 39 

Us arts, institutions, and laws, ami opening to them its 
rich ami varied commerce. They caused the construc- 
tion of numerous vessels for the transportation of cru- 
saders, thus stimulating ship-building ami navigation, 
and ultimately turning men's attention from the arts of 
war to those o( peace. They enlisted and sent abroad 
the dangerous and turbulent elements, for the most part 
never to return, thus purifying and making society at 
home safer and more peaceful. They struck the first 
great blow at the Feudal system, by compelling the 
nobles to sell or divide their great estates to raise 
money for their outfit. Finally they gave birth to the 
>pirit and system of Chivalry, whose value at this 
period, the darkest of the Dark Ages, can hardly be 
over-estimated. 

The System of Chivalry. During the Middle Ages, 
Christianity had, to a great extent, lost its power over the 
hearts and lives o[' men. War with all its unmeasured 
depths of vice and crime and woe, was the pastime of 
kings >>r the mere instrument of personal ambition ami 
passion, and even peace, when it came, instead of 
bringing new life to art and industry, left men to sink 
into a more degrading ignorance and a still grosser 
superstition. During the Middle Ages spiritual dark- 
ness brooded over all the nations. Sleep, like the sleep 
of death, rested on the human intellect. The spirit of 
Chivalry was light breaking upon the long and dreadful 
night, a clarion note awaking the world from the sleep 
of ages. It appealed to the nobler sentiments of the 
soul, inspiring the love of truth, honor, and religion, 
and enjoining the practice of courtesy, chastity, ami 
humanity. 



40 WIJJJAM II. 

Though, with its solemn oath, imposed on all who 
aspired to its honors, and its iron garb, the insignia of 
knightly eharaeter. it could not always transform rude 
and brutal men into true and chivalric knights, it did 
place upon rudeness and brutality a needed and effoe- 
live check. Who can estimate its worth to woman, it. 
the protection it gave her, through those long and 
gloomy ages, when sensual pleasure was the chief aim, 
and brute force the highest law, known to most men? 

The system of chivalry, both ludicrous and imprac- 
tical in some of its features, when viewed from the stand- 
point of the nineteenth century, passed away before 
an advancing civilization; but its spirit, enlarged and 
purified by true religion, still exists in the enlightened 
public sentiment of modern times. (See page -±0.) 

Henry I., 1100 to 1135 — 35 Years. Norman. 

First Charter of Liberties. Henry I., surnamed 
Beauclerc the Scholar, was clearly a usurper. Being 
opposed by the barons, who espoused the cause of 
Robert, now on his way home from Palestine, Henry 
following the example of William, fell back on the 
support of the English. He gave them a Charter of 
Liberties, in which he restored the laws of Edward the 
Confessor with the amendments made by the Conqueror. 
The various abuses of the preceding reign were named 
and forbidden ; the Church was freed from unjust exact- 
ions, and the kingdom from evil customs ; and the rights 
of vassals and tenants under the feudal system specially 
unaided. Anselm, Archbishop of Canterbury, who had 
been driven from the kingdomby the persecutions of the 
Red King, was recalled, and Flambard, the Red King's 
hated minister, was sent to the Tower. 



HENRY 1. 41 

To conciliate the English still further, he married 
Matilda, or Maud,* as the English loved to call her, a 
descendant of Edmund Ironside, thus uniting the 
Saxon and Norman families. 

Robert, Duke of Normandy. The enthusiasm of the 
English masses, at the elevation of an English prin- 
cess to the throne, was unbounded, and when Robert 
landed in England, and raised his standard as the 
rightful heir to the crown, he found himself, face 
to face, with sixty thousand resolute English yeo- 
men, and surrendered to Henry without a battle. 
A treaty was made between the brothers, Robert yield- 
ing all claims to the crown, for a pension for himself 
ind pardon for all his followers. And now occurs the 
larkest act of Henry's reign. Robert had no sooner 
returned to Normandy, and the barons dispersed to 
their castles, than commenced under Henry's direction 
the confiscation of the estates ot all implicated in the 
rebellion. The chivalric Robert, indignant at the 
treachery of his brother, at once called his retainers to 
arms and renewed the war. The king, claiming that 
the treaty had been broken, invaded Normandy, de- 
feated Robert's army, took Robert himself prisoner, 
and doomed him to life-long confinement within the 
walls of Cardiff Castle. It is affirmed that having once 
attempted to escape, Henry caused his eyes to be put 
out with a hot iron. This noblest of the sons of the 

♦When Canute seized the crown in 1017, he sent the infant sons of Edmund 
Ironside to Germany. 

The Confessor on coming to the throne, twenty-four years later, invited Ed- 
ward,the only surviver of these sons.to return to England. Edward died soon 
alter his arrival, and his family, at the coming of William the Conqueror, took 
refuge in Scotland, where his daughter Margaret married King Malcolm 
Maud was the offspring of this marriage. 



42 IIKNKY 1. 

Conqueror lingered twenty-nine years in sightless con- 
finement, dying, at last, in his dungeon an old man of 
eighty years. 

Character and Reign of Henry. Henry's eharaoter 
was a strange admixture oi' virtues and vioes. Ho 
irua unscrupulous, false-hearted, and revengeful, but ho 
promoted the welfare of his people, encouraged manu- 
factures, improved the coinage, established a system 
of weights ;iii(l measures, repealed the odious law of the 
Curfew, and re-organized the oourts of justice. Henrj 'a 
system of justioe, with modifications and Improvements! 
is the system of to-day, both in England and America. 

lie deall a heavy blow at (he Feudal system, and gave 

an impulse to liberty, when he endowed the great 
towns with oharters of freedom. 

The White Ship. The last years of Henry's life 
were sad and gloomy, on account of the death by ship- 
wreck, of his only son, Prince William. They had been 
on a visit to Normandy, to secure the acknowledgment 
of the Prince as heir to the crown, and to complete his 
marriago contract with the daughter of the Count oi' 
Anjou. Both matters being satisfactorily arranged, 
they embarked for the return, on different ships. The 
White Ship, in which William had taken passage, being 
delayed, attempted to overtake the rest of the fleet by 
moonlight. Speeding swiftly along under the sweep oi' 
its fifty rowers, it struck on a rock in the v:\cv of Aider- 
1103 and went io the bottom. Only a single soul 
RSCaped to tell the sad tale io the bereaved father, who 
is said never to have smiled again. 

Henry left a daughter Matilda, whom he had married 
to Geoffrey Plantagenet, Barl of Anjou, to strengthen 



HENRY 1. 43 

his possessions beyond the channel. Before she could 
return to England to take the crown that belonged to 
her, it was seized by Stephen, Count of Blois, nephew 
of the late. king. Affable in his manners and familiar 
in his address, Stephen had made himself a general 
favorite with the people of (he capital, and so paved his 
way to power. 

Stephen, 1135 to 115± — 10 years. Norman. 

Civil War. Matilda endeavored to secure her rights 
by force of arms. David, King of Scotland, was the 
first to espouse her cause. With an army of wild and 
lawless highlanders, he invaded the northern counties, 
inflicting havoc alike on the friends and foes of Matilda. 
Against this army of marauders, the Archbishop of 
York took the field, and, in the battle of the Stand- 
ard, put them to utter rout and drove them across the 
border. Matilda herself reached England the next 
year with a small force, and her adherents quickly 
gathered to her support. In the battle of Lincoln the 
army of Stephen was defeated, and Stephen himself 
captured and sent, in chains, to Bristol Castle. 

Matilda entered London and was acknowledged 
queen of England. lint her haughty manners and 
violent temper, so much in contrast with the generous 
and good natured ways of Stephen, soon changed even 
her friends to foes. The rapid approach of Stephen's 
heroic queen at the head ol' an army, and tiie ringing 
of the alarm bells in London, having caused a sudden 
uprising of the people, Matilda fled, in haste, from tho 
city, and took refuge within the walls of Oxford Castle, 



44 STEPHEN . 

Stephen, once more at liberty and ;it the head of his 
army, in 114l\ surrounded her place of refuge, so dis- 
posing his men as, apparently, to cut oil* every uvenuo 
of escape. The garrison ran short of provisions, and 
Matilda with three; devoted knights, elad like herself 
m white to resemble the snow that covered the ground 
(for it was mid-winter), passed silently through the 
lines of Stephen's army in the night, crossed the frozen 
Thames, and found refuge among the loyal people 
of the west, whence, four years later, she withdrew 
to France. Her son Henry had now grown up to 
manhood. Possessed, by inheritance and marriage, of 
the larger part of France, he collected an army of his 
own subjects, crossed the channel, and re-opened the 
war with Stephen. 

Compromise Between Stephen and Henry. But the 
bishops of England, under the lead of Theobald, Arch- 
bishop of Canterbury, weary of a struggle that had 
brought such fearful waste, and to which they could 
see no end, finally, in L153, effected the treaty of 
Wallingibrd. It was mutually agreed that the crown 
should remain with Stephen while he lived, and descend 
to Henry at his death. It was also decided that the 
grants of crown lands made by Stephen should be can- 
celled, the new castles demolished, and the foreign 
troops dismissed. 

The Robber Barons. Two things influenced Stephen 
to consent to this arrangement, the death of his eldest 
son, aud the defection of his principal nobles, some of 
wdioni had turned against him, while more had abandon- 
ed the contest and retired to their estates. We find 
here a practical illustration of the workings of the 



STEPHEN. 45 

Feudal system. To win the support of the barons, 
Stephen hud, at the beginning of his reign, given them 
permission to build new castles on their estates, besides 
granting new titles of nobility to his chosen adherents. 
One hundred and twenty-six fortresses were thus erect- 
ed, many of them of great strength and frowning from 
inaccessible heights. Secure in these, the barons lived 
like petty princes, defying the authority of the king, 
and renewing old family quarrels. They plundered 
the country around their estates, and taxed its inhabi- 
tants till famine stared them in the face. Even 
churches were robbed of their wealth. The rich were 
waylaid as they journeyed, and held or tortured for 
ransom. These nobles have gained in history the well- 
deserved title of Robber Barons. 

The Outlaws of the Forest. Following their exam- 
ple, criminals and outcasts, unemployed soldiers and 
starving peasants, everywhere took to the woods and 
became outlaws, making it dangerous to travel in some 
districts without an armed escort. Banded together, 
sometimes in large numbers, they set laws and authori- 
ties at defiance, or, retreating to their hiding places in 
the dense recesses of the forest, were safe from pursuit. 
While many of these bandits were rude and ruthless 
men, sparing neither age nor sex, others were generous 
and courteous, robbing the rich to relieve the wants of the 
poor. Such was Robin Hood, the very prince of bandits, 
wdio, some fifty years later, in the reign of Richard I., 
frith a hundred free and jovial companions, occupied 
the depths of the Sherwood forest. 

It is difficult to depict the anarchy and misery to 
which England was reduced in the reign of Stephen. 



46 STEPHEN. 

Towns were abandoned, farms were left to decay, the 

sanctuaries were crowded with helpless, starving peo- 
ple, and thousands fled, in terror, to foreign countries. 
Stephen lived but a year after the treaty of Walling- 
ford, and Henry came to the throne unopposed, assum- 
ing for the royal line which he founded the family name 
of Plantagenet. 

Sec page 40. 

The training of youth for the duties and privileges of chivalry was long and 
arduous. The castles of nobles, especially those famed for knightly character, 
became schools of chivalry. Thither, at the age of -oven or eight, gathered 
the sons ot the neighboring gentry to begin their education. At the age of 
fourteen, the valets or pages as they were called alter the 15th century, became 
squires, exchanging the dagger, which alone they had hitherto worn, for 
sword and belt. At the age of twenty-one their education was complete, and 
they were entitled to receive the guerdon of knighthood. The ceremonies at- 
tending initiation were Impressive. Each candidate was first placed in the 
bath— a symbol of purification,— then clothed, successively, in a white tunic— 
a symbol of purity,— in a red robe— a symbol of the blood he would shed in 
defence of the true faith, — and in a black garment— a symbol of the death that 
awaited him as it awaits all men. After a rigid fast of twenty-four hours, he 
entered the church, as evening drew on, and passed the silent vigils of the 
night alone, engaged in prayer and meditation. At the close of the next day, 
which was spent in solemn religious services, the candidate knelt before his 
lord, who gave him three blows on the shoulder with the flat of the sword, 
saying, "In the name of God, of St. Michael, and of St. George, I dub thee 
knight; be brave, bold, and loyal." Clad in full armor, with gilded spurs upon 
his heels — the emblem of knighthood— and mounted upon a trained charger, 
he was ready to ride away to that ideal life of ancient chivalry, knightly con- 
flict and romantic adventure, which song, legend, and story had painted in 
such bright colors to his ardent imagination during his long novitiate. 

The training of boys for knighthood was two-fold— physical and moral. 
Under the direction of the lords with whom they lived, they were practised in 
all kinds of athletic exercises, such as hunting, hawking, swimming, leaping, 
climbing, and carrying weights, in the use of arms, such as the bow, sword, 
lance, and battle-axe, and in horsemanship. 

To the ladies of the castle was entrusted the care of their manners and mor- 
als. They were taught courtly accomplishments, and made familiar with the 
use of musical instruments, and with the songs of the troubadours. They 
were rigidly trained to be obedient to their superiors, respectful to the aged, 
and courteous to all. Especially were they taught that it was essential to the 
character of every true and loyal knight to honor religion and reverence 
woman. Indeed, the very standard which religion has set up for human as- 
piration and action, is found in the teachings of the ideal chivalry of the 
Middle Ages. This is undoubtedly due to the influence of the enlightened 
clergy among the nations, who saw in the wise direction of the institution ol 
chivalry, a remedy for the degrading ignorance and barbarity ol the times. 



CHAPTER V. 



Plantagenet Family, 1154 to 1485 — 331 Years. 



HENRY II. 

EI CHARD L, CcBur-de-Lion. 
JOHN., Lackland. 
HENRY III., of Winchester. 
EDWARD I. 



EDWARD II., of Caernarvon. 
EDWARD III. 
RICHARD II., of Bordeaux. 
HOUSE OF LANCASTER. 
HOUSE OF YORK. 



Henry IT., 1154 to 1189 — 35 years. Plantageneto 

The Condition of England. No king ever mounted 
the English throne under circumstances more peculiar, 
and, in some respects, more appalling, than greeted the 
first Plantagenet on his accession to power. During 
the reign of Stephen, the entire fabric of society had 
fallen to pieces, and both regard for law and respect 
for religion had been swept away in the general wreck. 
Beginning with the nobility, the spirit of lawlessness 
had permeated the priesthood and the peasantry. It 
is no wonder the helpless peasant either became an 
outlaw, or, in consternation, abandoned home and har- 
vest-field and fled beyond seas, when even nobles 
became robbers! This was the peculiar and appalling 
aspect of the case, that the best and highest elements 
in society had become, for the time being, most demor- 
alized. Henry, though but twenty-one years of age 
when he ascended the throne, undertook the work of 
reconstruction with a courage and an intelligence that 



(47) 



48 IIENRY II. 

challenge our admiration. His efforts were mainly 
directed to the accomplishment of jbwo distinct ends, 
the establishment of order, and the correction of the 
abuses of the church. 

The Establishment of Order. The Robber Barons 
were, one after another, subdued, and theii castles razed 
to the ground; and the less noble, but no worse, 
highwaymen, the forest outlaws, were mercilessly hunt- 
ed down. The crown lands were also reclaimed, and 
foreign soldiers expelled. To increase the power of 
the crown, and weaken that of the baronage still more, 
two sweeping edicts were issued. One, in 1159, sub- 
stituted the payment of money, called "shield mone\ ,*' 
for the personal services of the barons in lime of war, 
enabling the king to keep a paid and standing force. 
The other, in 1181, restored the militia, making every 
freeman a soldier, always to be suitably armed, ami 
subject to the call of the king in time of national danger. 

Contest between Church and State. Henry's con- 
test with the church was not only more difficult, but 
more dangerous, than that with the barons. Ancient- 
ly, judges and bishops sat together on the civil bench- 
es, but the Conqueror had established separate courts 
tor ecclesiastical eases, over which the bishops pre- 
sided alone. Criminals in holy orders were thus 
put beyond the reach of tin 1 civil authorities, and as, by 
a canon of the church, the priesthood could not impose 
the death penalty upon one of their own order, these 
clerical criminals were also put beyond the reach of 
extreme punishment. It is not surprising that the 
clergy had, to some extent, become independent, or that 
one hundred murders were proved to have been com- 



ITENTIY TT. 49 

mittcd, during tho first few years of Henry's reign, by 
priests, who either suffered no punishment, or one not 
at al] commensurate with the crime. They merely 
suffered sonic trifling penance or degradation in office. 

The Council of Clarendon. At the summons of tho 
b ing, a council of nobles and prelates met at the castle 
of Clarendon in 11G4. It was decided by this council, 
among other things, that tho civil courts should have 
a certain jurisdiction over the church courts, and that 
law-breaking priests, on conviction in the latter, should 
be stripped of their orders and turned over to the civil 
authorities for punishment. 

Thomas a Becket and King Ilenry. Thomas a 
Becket had been Henry's bosom friend and compan- 
ion. Ilenry had raised him from poverty to affluence, 
from tho position of tutor to his children, to that of 
Archbishop of Canterbury, the highest office of tho 
church in England. Becket at first accepted, then re- 
jected, tho "Constitutions of Clarendon ;" and then 
began that long and bitter struggle between himself 
and the king, in which personal animosities are 
strangely mingled with the graver affairs of church 
and state, ending in the violent death of Becket in 1170, 
and the ultimate triumph of the king. The priesthood 
and the laity were made equal before the law. The 
supremacy of the state in civil matters was achieved. 
Although, after the death of Becket, the king assented 
lo a modification of the " Constitutions," it was merely 
nominal, the practice of the courts and the submission 
of the bishops showing that the king still retained all 
the substantial fruits of victory. 



50 HF.NUY II. 

The Death of Thomas a Beoket. The .loath of 
Beoket was tragic Four knights in attendance on 
the kingin Normandy, interpreting too seriously his 
rash and impatient wish "to ho rid of the turbulent 
priest," silently left the royal presence, and secretly 
crossed the English Channel. Making their way to :he 
gray old Cathedra] of Canterbury,— where shortly be- 
fore, on Christmas day, Becket, sad but undismayed, had 
preached to the peasantry from the text "1 come to die 
among you," — the knightly assassins, backed by their 
followers, murdered him before his own altar. A cry 
oi' horror arose from all Christendom. For the first 
time during the hitter struggle Henry bent before the 
storm, lie disclaimed all responsibility for the orime, 
ami afterwards publioly expressed his sorrow for its 
commission, by walking barefooted to the tomb of 
Becket, and submitting his back to the scourge oi' the 
monks; ami the threatened excommunication was 
averted. The guilty knights went on a pilgrimage to 
Jerusalem, where they died; and on their tomb was 
inscribed this epitaph, " lien 1 lie the wretches who mur- 
dered St. 'Thomas oi' Canterbury." 

The Judiciary System. Oneofthemost interesting 
works oi' Henry's reign was the improvement oi' the 
judiciary system founded by Henry 1. England was 
divided into six judicial districts, each with three itiner- 
ant judges, who went regularly on their circuits, 
having jurisdiction alike over peasant and coble. The 
most radical change was made in the term of trial. 
The Anglo-Saxons brought with them, from Germany, 
a term of trial called Compurgation. A person 
charged with crime was acquitted or convicted, 



HENRY II. 51 

according as his kinsmen or neighbors, generally 
twelve, or some multiple of twelve, in number, made 
oath to bis innocence or guilt. Another and very 
singular method of trial was called the Judgment of 
God. Among other things, if a suspected person could 
sarry a bar of red hot iron a certain distance, or plunge 
ais hand into boiling water, and in three days show no 
scar, he was pronounced innocent, otherwise, guilty. 
Sometimes he was thrown into deep water, and if lie 
sank he was innocent, if he swam, guilty. The Con- 
queror introduced Wager of Battle, or Single Combat. 
Au accused person was allowed to challenge his accuse] 
to mortal combat, and if he came out of the tight vic- 
torious he was declared innocent, otherwise. guilty. 

Trial by Jury. "The first clear beginnings" of Trial 
by Jury are found in the reign of Henry 11, when, by the 
Assize of Clarendon, in 1166, twelve freemen chosen 
from the hundred, and tour from each township, acting 
in the two-told capacity of judges and witnesses, pre- 
sented reputed criminals for the Ordeal of Battle, or the 
Judgment of Cod. By the same Assize, Compurgation 
was abolished. (See note on page 89), 

Henry's Foreign Possessions. Before bis accession to 
the English throne, Henry had extensive possessions in 
France. I Ic inherited Maine and Anjou from his father, 
and Normandy from his mother. Poitou, Aquitaineand 
Gascony he acquired by marriage with Eleanor, the di- 
vorced wife of the King of France. As Duke of Norman- 
dy he had a right to the feudal superiority oi' Brittany. 

English dominion in Ireland dates from Henry's reign. 
Shortly after his accession he secured the sanction of 
Pope Adrian IV. to the conquest oi' the island. Op- 



52 HENRY TT. 

position among the English barons forced the king to 
forego the execution of his plans for a season; but the 
scheme of conquest was renewed when Dermod, King 
of Leinster, having been driven from his kingdom, 
sought the help of Henry, whom he acknowledged as 
his feudal superior. A small force under Fit/ Stephen, 
a Welsh knight, landed on the island in 1169, followed 
by a larger one under "Strongbow," Earl of Pembrook. 
The capture of Dublin, the marriage of "Strongbow" 
with the daughter of Dermod, and the death of Der- 
mod himself, left the English in full possession of the 
kingdom of Leinster. "Strongbow" at first assumed 
royal authority, but this he was forced to surrender to 
Henry, who came over in 1171 and received the hom- 
age of most of the chiefs and bishops. Though Ireland 
was nominally conquered, English authority was lightly 
regarded by the Irish chieftains for hundreds of years. 
Rebellions under Henry's Sons. The last years of 
Henry's life were full i^l' trouble, lie had four surviving 
sons, Henry, Geoffrey, Richard, and John. Encouraged 
by their mother, and also by the king of France, whose 
daughter Prince Henry had married, these unnatural sons 
repeatedly made war on their father, seeking to wrest 
from him portions of his dominions. Prince Henry aspired 
to sovereign power in England or Normandy, Richard was 
ambitious to rule over Aquitaine, and Geoffrey claimed 
possession of Brittany. In one of the most formidable of 
these attempts made in 117.'), they were aided by the kings 
of Scotland and France. It was at this time that King 
Henry, to propitiate divine favor, performed his penance 
at the tomb of a Becket. William, King of Scotland, was 
captured by the English the very day the royal penance 



HENRI II. 53 

was completed, and was not released until he consented 
to acknowledge himself a vassal of the English crown. 
It was on this acknowledgment that Edward I., after- 
wards based his claim to the sovereignty of Scotland. 
In their last attempt, Henry was compelled to submit 
to the most humiliating terms. After the treaty of 
peace was signed, the king, who was sick in bed, asked 
to see the list of rebels he had agreed to pardon, and 
the first name that met his eye was that of John, his 
youngest and his favorite son. He turned his face to 
the wall, heart-broken, saying, "Now let the world go 
as it will, I care for nothing more." lie died soon after, 
and was succeeded by his eldest surviving son, Richard. 

Richard I., 1189 to 1199 — 10 years. Plantagenet. 

Slaughter of Jews. Richard's inauguration took 
place in the midst of a cruel slaughter of Jews. They 
had come to the coronation with rich gifts to propitiate 
the royal favor. A cry having gone forth that the king 
had decreed their death, they were beset by an ignorant 
and blood-thirsty rabble. Blood once shcd> passions 
once inflamed, these hated but helpless people were 
mercilessly slaughtered, and their dwellings burned, 
throughout the city. As the news spread from town to 
town,! he same terrible scenes were enacted, the same 
horrible butchery of innocent people. At York, five 
hundred Jews, with their families, took refuge in the 
Castle, which was speedily surrounded by an armed 
force. The Jews vainly offered their wealth as a ran- 
som for their lives. Having no hope of mercy, they 
plunged their daggers into the bodies of their own 
wives and children, rather than see them fall into the 



54 1UCHAKD I. 

hands of their infuriated enemies. Richard had 
accepted their gifts, but, though he issued a proclama- 
tion in their favor, he took no adequate measures for 
their protection. 

Richard in the Holy Laud. The Christian nations 
were preparing for the third Crusade. Richard and 
Philip of France arranged to go in company, at the head 
of their forces. To raise sufficient money for his outfit, 
Richard freely offered for sale fhe lands of the crown, 
besides titles, offices, and pardons. At the rebuke of 
one of his friends, on account of his wholesale disposal 
of crown property, he is said to have exclaimed, " I 
would sell London, if I could find a purchaser." 

His career in the Holy Land is full of the stirring 
incidents of battle and adventure. He captured Acre 
and defeated Saladin, the great Saracen, at Ascalon. 
Philip, jealous of Richard's growing fame, abandoned 
the Crusade and returned to France. John, Richard's 
brother, probably instigated by Philip, usurped the 
government of England, and was planning to seize the 
crown, when Richard, alarmed for the safety of his 
kingdom, prepared to return home. Effecting a treaty 
with Saladin, by which pilgrims could visit the Holy 
Sepulchre unmolested, Richard reluctantly turned his 
back upon Jerusalem, the goal of many hopes, whoso 
Avails were, indeed, in sight, but within winch he was 
destined never to enter. 

Richard a Captive in the Tyrol. Being wrecked in 
the Adriatic, and attempting to make his way overland 
to England to escape the cruisers of Philip, he fell 
into the hands of his enemy, the Emperor of Ger- 
many. After lying a captive for more than a year, in 



RICHARD I. 55 

the Tyrol, he was released on the payment by the Eng- 
lish people of one hundred thousand marks, as ransom. 
The English people were reduced to the greatest dis- 
tress to raise the money, the churches even melting 
down their plate. Richard returned, in 1194, after an 
absence of four years. "Take care of yourself," wrote 
Plrilip to John, who hastened to leave the country. 
But returning at Richard's command, he confessed on 
his knees his traitorous designs, and humbly asked for 
pardon. Said Lion Heart with characteristic generos- 
ity, "I hope I shall as easily forget his ingratitude, 
as he will, my forbearance." 

War with France and Death of Richard. Richard 
remained in England a few months, and then crossed the 
Channel to wage war with Philip. Learning that the 
Viscount of Limoges, one of his vassals, had found 
hidden treasure in one of his fields, Richard demanded 
its surrender, under the common law that made treasure- 
trove the property of the Crown. The demand was 
refused, and Richard at once besieged the Viscount in 
his castle of Chalus. During the siege he received a 
mortal wound, and died, as he had lived, in armor. 
Though ten years king of England, he had spent less 
than one in his kingdom. 

Character of Richard I. Richard the Lion Heart 
was a valiant and romantic knight, who loved tilts and 
tournaments better than royal courts, daring deeds on 
hard-fought -battle-fields, than the irksome cares and 
dry details of government. His very name, embalmed 
in song and story, has become a synonym for Chiv- 
alry. In Richard, the king was subordinate to the 
knight, and since he made so poor a king, it would, 



56 RICHARD 1. 

doubtless, please the young who may read this book, 
could we represent him as, at least, a model knight, 
famous for humanity and true nobility, as well as match- 
less valor. But beneath Richard's iron armor there 
beat a hard, cold, seltish heart. Though fearles* 
of danger and mighty in battle, courteous to a gallant 
enemy and generous to a fallen foe, a skilled musician 
and familiar with the songs of the Troubadours, Rich- 
ard was brutal and unscrupulous, and stained his 
knightly honor by many a dark and cruel deed. He 
cared little for the happiness or welfare of his people, 
the power to gratify an inordinate love of military 
glory and daring adventure being the limit of his am- 
bition. Though dazzled by his brilliant personal quali- 
ties, and proud of his world-wide renown, England 
mingled a sense of relief with a sigh of regret, when 
her roving soldier-king, whose genius had both impov- 
erished and glori tied her, rested forever at Fontevrault. 

John., 1199 to 1216 — 17 years. Plantageuet. 

Character of John. John, the craven-heart, was as 
base and cowardly, as Richard the Lion Heart was gen- 
erous and knightly. Ho had, indeed, a brazen bold- 
ness in the midst of safety, but it quickly vanished at 
the presence of danger. Though grossly impious in 
his treatment of the sacred rites of the church, he was 
accustomed to wear charms and consecrated relics about 
his person as a safeguard against evil. Other English 
kings were licentious, but there is no king in all the list, 
so basely licentious as he. Destitute alike of virtue and 
honor, he respected neither the purity of woman, nor the 
sanctity of home. 



joun. 57 

Loss of Possessions in France. He is general ly believ- 
ed to have murdered, with his own hand, his nephew 
Arthur, a boy of fifteen and the rightful heir to the 
throne, and to have kept Eleanor, sister to Arthur, in 
close confinement, till she wasted away and died. In 
retaliation for his treatment of Arthur, he was stripped 
of all his possessions on the continent by the king of 
France, and was ever after called Lackland. To 
recover them, he raised a large army and invaded tho 
territories of France. When the opposing armies 
were on the eve of battle, John proposed peace, and 
ignominiously fled to England in the very midst of 
negotiations. 

John's Quarrel with the Pope. John quarrelled with 
the pope about tho appointment of an Archbishop of 
Canterbury. He had secured the election, by the 
monks, of John de Gray, but Pope Innocent III. 
appointed Stephen Langton. Tho monks, submitting 
to the decision of their superior and recognizing 
Langton, were turned out of doors and reduced to 
beggary by the enraged tyrant. 

The Papal Interdict. Ho made light of the papal 
threat to lay the kingdom under an Interdict, and 
when it fell, in 1208, with all its horrors, upon the land, 
he alone seemed insensible to the blow. The pope 
waited one year, and tlien issued against John, who still 
remained obdurate, a bull of excommunication. Even 
this had no terrors for John, and in about three years 
more was launched against him the last and crowning 



58 joiin. 

decroo of tho church, that of Deposition. * Philip of 
Franoe was specially commissioned with the execution 
of this final deoree. 

John's Submission to the rope For a while John 
continued defiant. But when Philip had assembled 
b great army ready for invasion, with seventeen 

hundred ships for its transportation across the 
ohannel, and the elements of opposition at home 
were beginning to gather like a dark c 7 .oud about 
him, his bravado forsook him, and his submission to the 

pope was sudden and complete. 

Said William tho Conqueror, when Pope Gregory 
Yll. called OH him to do fealty for his realm, "Fealty 
1 have never willed to do, nor do 1 av i 1 1 to do it now. 
1 have never promised it, nor do I find that my prede- 
cessors did it to yours." Every true Englishman expe- 
rienced a share of the national shame, when the degen- 
erate descendant of the Conqueror, on his knees, at 
the feet of the papal Legate, acknowledged himself :i 
vassal, and his kingdom a lief of the Papacy. It was 

•It is dlffloult to realise at thla day the effects <>r the Papal Interdlot. To the 
people, it was nothing loas than the ourae of God. aii England was atonoe 
plungod into deepest gloom, (Or the blessings and benedictions of religion 
were suddenly withdrawn from all except tho unoonsoloui iufant and the 
dying. For Pour long years it. was as though a pestllenoe bad Bwept over iiio 
land. Theohurohes w ere olosed, and their hells hung motionless in the belfries. 
'• No knell was tolled for the dead ; tor the <n-:ui remained unburlod. No meriy 
peals wcloomed the bridal prooesslon; tor no oouple oould bo joined in 
nedlook." 

Bzoommnnloatlon adds i>nt little to the miseries entailed bj the Interdlot! 
except to the one who suffers it. /Looordlng to the tenets of the ohuroh and 
universal belief at Hi it age, an exoommunioated person was oul <>ir from all 
hope ni Heaven as well as ail fellowship in the ohuroh on earth. 

The deoree of Deposition absolved iiio people from their allegiance, the 
throne being declared vacant. 



JOHN. 59 

the first and the Last time, in its history of a thousand 
years, that a king of England surrendered to a foreign 
potentate the independence of his country. 

Magna Charta, A.l). 1*215. With John's submission, 
the papal decrees wore recalled, and the French inva- 
sion stayed. Elated at the ease with whieh he had 
eseaped the threatened danger, and relying on the sup- 
port of the pope, whoso servant he had become, John 
next undertook to punish the barons for refusing to join 
him in a fresh war with France. Three years of royal 
outrage brought affairs to a crisis. A league, formed 
in secret among the barons, culminated in a general 
muster of their forces, and John suddenly found him- 
self face to face with all England in arms. 

(hi the fifteenth of June, 1215, in the valley of Runny- 
mede, — some say on an island in the Thames, — the 
enraged but helpless tyrant king was forced to sign 
Magna Charta, the most remarkable instrument known 
in English history. It was not entirely new. Some 
of its most important principles can be traced to Angio- 
ma x on origin, having been set aside by the Norman 
conquest. Others were brought from the reigns of the 
Henries, but all were made more broad and liberal and 
couched in more explicit terms. The two most impor- 
tant sections run as follows : — 

Section 45. " No freeman shall be taken, or disseized, 
or outlawed, or banished, or anywise injured, nor will 
we pass upon him, nor send upon him, unless by the 
legal judgment of his peers, or by the law of the land." 

Section 4(5. " We will sell to no man, we will not 
deny or delay to any man, right or justice." 



60 JOHN. 

Tn other sections, tho royal prerogative was limited 
and defined ; tho rights of the church guaranteed ; the 

Feudal system relieved of some of its grievances ; 
Unlawful lines and punishments forbidden ; the free 
disposal of personal property by will allowed ; the 
means of obtaining a livelihood, such as the tools of the 

mechanic and the goods ol' the merchant, were exempt 
from fine or forfeiture for crime ; tines were to be pro- 
portioned to the offence; the circuit courts brought 
into the neighborhood of all, and the liberties and cus- 
toms of free towns continued. 

So far only freemen were benefited. The largei 
pari of the people of England were serfs, ami hut 
two sections related directly to them. In one of these, 
agricultural implements were exempt from line or for- 
feiture on account of crime, and in the other, guardians 
were charged, in the management of the property of 
their wards, "to make no destruction or waste of tho 
men and things" 

Such is a partial notice of the Great Charter, called 
by llallam "the keystone of English liberty." The 
people o( England did not realize, for hundreds of years 
to Come, all the benefits conferred by (he Croat Char- 
ter. Its provisions were often ignored and openly trod- 
den under foot by John and his successors, but the great 
principles of justice and liberty which they embodied 
were never forgotten by the people. They became, 
amidst the oppressions of after times, the centres 
around which clustered national hopes, (he goal towards 
which were directed national efforts. They were so 
many beacon lights in an almost shoreless sea of mis- 
rule, guiding an oppressed people in their struggle for 



JOHN. 61 

freedom. They arc to-day the basis and the bulwark 
of those rights and immunities that make England and 
America the most free and happy countries on the earth. 
Patriotism of the Bishops of England. The rest 
of John's ignoble history is soon told. He surround- 
ed himself with foreign soldiers, for the double pur- 
pose of taking vengeance on the barons, who had been 
the authors, and were now the guardians, of the Char- 
ter, and of overthrowing the Charter itself. John was 
assisted by the pope, who as over-lord of England an- 
nulled the Charter, and excommunicated all who sus- 
tained it. The patriotism of Archbishop Langton and 
most of the bishops of the English church, at this 
period, should never be forgotten. Langton himself 
became the leader of the barons in their opposition to 
the tyranny of John and the dictations of the pope, 
lie tirst presented to them, at a preliminary meeting, 
the charter of Henry I., as a basis for their demands. 
The bishops and the barons stood side by side at 
Runnymede, alike indifferent to the execrations of the 
king and the anathemas of the pope. In the midst 
of the contest, John suddenly died. Overtaken by the 
incoming tide, as he was crossing a treacherous place 
by the sea-side, called the Wash, his treasure and 
material were swept away, and his army thrown into 
confusion. Vexation and exposure, or a surfeit, or poison 
administered at the abbey where John found shelter, 
threw him into a fever, of which he died in a few 
days. 



62 henry in. 

Henry III., 1216 to 1272 — 56 Tears. Plantagenet. 

The Regency. The Earl of Pembroke was appointed 
Regent, and under his vigorous rule England was soon 
reduced to order. Louis, a prince of France, who, in 
the midst of the struggle with John, had been invited 
by the barons to assume the English crown, soon left 
the country with all his followers. The Charter was 
confirmed, and the severities of the forest laws miti- 
gated, by the substitution of fine and imprisonment, 
instead of mutilation and death, for killing the kimr'a 
deer. Unfortunately, in 1219, the able Pembroke died, 
and England quickly relapsed into a state of disorder. 
Henry had placed foreigners in all the principal offices 
of the state, to the great disgust of his own people. 
The pope, too, as over-lord of England, had filled the 
vacant livings with foreign priests, and had even de- 
manded a share in the government. The new Regent 
Hubert de Burgh, though ruling for a few years with 
wisdom and discretion, at last fell under the severe 
displeasure of the king, who had become of age, and, 
in 1232, was removed from office, and even thrown into 
the Tower. 

Redress, the Condition of a Vote of Supplies. In 
1225, a great council was summoned to consider the 
question of supplies to the crown. A grant was made 
conditioned on a new confirmation of the Charter. 
From this time the practice prevailed of making a con- 
firmation of the Charter, or a redress of grievances, the 
condition of a vote of money to the crown. Some of 
the most precious rights now enjoyed by the English 
people were retained or acquired in this way. 



HENRY HI. 63 

Henry's Attempt to Overthrow the Charter, In 

1227, Henry, being twenty-two years of age, took the 
reins of government into his own hands. Ho inaugu- 
rated his full assumption of power by an attempt, in 
the following declaration, to make the Great Charter 
subordinate to the royal prerogative : 

M Whenever and wherever, and as often as it may be 
our pleasure, we may declare, interpret, enlarge or 
diminish the aforesaid statutes, and their several parts , 
by our own free will, and as to us shall seem expedient 
for the security of us and our land." 

This declaration was the key-note to Henry's policy 
for forty years, while the barons, on account of feuds 
among themselves, stood idly by. The history of the 
whole period is but a dreary and monotonous record of 
royal recklessness and folly, of royal beggary and extor- 
tion. The king, when in need of money, would swear 
on his honor as " a man, a christian, a knight, and a 
king," to preserve inviolate the provisions of the Char- 
ter, and the next moment, when his wants had been 
supplied, trample them, in mere wantonness, under 
his feet. Under the royal influence, even the courts 
of justice became but a legalized system of extortion 
and robbery, the judges on the circuits compounding 
felonies and selling justice to the highest bidder. 

Rebellion of the Barons. In 1258, a crisis was 
reached. There had been a failure in the crops, and a 
famine was imminent. Corn sent from Germany to 
relieve the general distress, was seized and sold by 
the king ; and being still in want, he summoned the 
barons to a great council at Westminster. Aroused by 
outrage and united at last, they obeyed the summons ; 



64 HENRY III. 

but they came at the head of their men-at-arms. As 
Henry entered the great hall at Westminster and looked 
upon the stern array of mail-clad barons, whose clank- 
ing swords alone broke the stillness, he asked in the sud 
denness of his alarm, "Am I a prisoner?" "No, you 
are our sovereign," was the answer ; " but yonr foreign 
favorites and your prodigality have brought misery upon 
tho realm, and we demand that you confer authority 
upon those who are able and willing to redress the 
grievances of the public." Henry was powerless to 
resist, and consented to a commission of twenty-four 
barons, one-half to be appointed by himself, empowered 
to act in behalf of the realm. But all attempts at a 
permanent settlement failed, and both parties finally 
prepared for war. In 1264, the opposing armies met on 
the downs of Lcw r es. The royal army was defeated, 
and the king and his gallant son, Prince Edward, taken 
prisoners. 

Simon do Montfort and the House of Commons, 
A. D. 1265. The kingdom was now at the disposal of 
the barons. The ablest man among them was Simon 
de Montfort, Earl of Leicester, whose brief but bril- 
liant career furnishes the one bright page in the black 
record of Henry's reign. In a Parliament, summoned 
by Montfort, at Westminster, in 12G5, he invited rep- 
resentatives of the people, two knights from each 
county, two citizens from each city, and two burgesses 
from each borough (anciently a community of ten 
families, now a town) to take their seats side by side 
with prelates and barons. This was the first House of 
Commons. As from the tyranny of John sprang the 
Great Charter, the corner-stone of English liberty, so 



HENRY III. 65 

from the oppressions of Henry rose the House of Com- 
mons, its bulwark and defence. 

Evesham. Prince Edward, having escaped from cap- 
tivity, quickly assembled the royal forces, won the 
battle of Evesham, and placed the liberated king once 
more on the throne. Though the barons were beaten, 
and the noble de Montfort slain, no attempt was made to 
undo their one great work, the establishment of the 
right of the people to representation in Parliament. 
Order being restored, Prince Edward went on a Cru- 
sade, the last in the series, in 1270. In two years 
Henry died, and the same day the nobles took the oath 
of fealty to the absent Prince. In two years more, 
King Edward, having made a ten years' truce with 
the Saracens, returned to England, and was formally 
crowned at Westminster. 

Edward I. 1272 to 1307 — 35 years. Plantagenet. 

Conquest of Wales. Llewellyn, Prince of Wales, 
had repeatedly refused to acknowledge Edward as 
his feudal superior. In 1277, an English army was sent 
into Wales, and the Prince, deserted by most of his 
chieftains, was compelled to sue for peace and accept 
Edward's terms, the surrender of the sovereignty of 
his country. In 1282, the Welsh people, fired by 
patriot bards, whose stirring songs had kept alive in 
their hearts the love of liberty, rose in rebellion against 
their English rulers. Edward once more invaded the 
country at the head of ail irresistible force, and Llew- 
ellyn being early slain in a skirmish, the Welsh chief- 
tains quietly submitted and the country was formally 
annexed to England. Edward wisely gave the Welsh 



66 EDWAKD 1. 

people the English system of courts and laws, and foi 
a hundred years, with a single exception, they remained 
at peace. Edward's queen, who had accompanied him 
on the march, gave birth, in the castle of Caernarvon, 
to a son, some twenty years afterwards called Prince of 
Wales, u title still given to the eldest son of the reign- 
ing sovereign. Returning to England, Edward devoted 
himself to the administration of the government. lie 
secured the adoption of a code of wise and wholesome 
laws,* thereby winning in history the name of the Eng- 
lish Justinian. 

Arbitrary Taxation Forbidden. By far the most 
important of these laws was passed in the year 1297, 
when by excessive and arbitrary taxation, Edward had 
provoked a rebellious confederation of the barons. He 
was compelled to assent to a new confirmation of the 
charter, and the addition of a clause forbidding the 
king to tax the people without the consent of Parlia- 
ment. Edward not only made wise laws, but he 
great ly improved the courts, f rendering the adminis- 
tration of justice more sure and equal. 

•Among these were laws basing more thoroughly than ever the defence of 
the kingdom on an armed militia, ever at the immediate call of the king; en- 
suring the freedom of elections against menace or forcible interference; for- 
bidding judges and officers receiving rewards for official services, lawyers 
using deceit to beguile the court, persons uttering slanders and jurors render- 
ing a false verdict; requiring the gates of walled towns to be kept shut from 
sunset to sunrise, and a watch to be set; ordering every man to cut away the 
bushes and undergrowth on his own land, two hundred feet on each side of 
the principal roads, to make an ambush by highwaymen difficult; and a statute 
for London, forbidding armed men to appear in the streets, or taverns to sell 
ale or beer,after Curfew. 

t The ecclesiastical courts were confined to purely spiritual matters. The 
county court was undisturbed, but by the appointment of " Justices of the 
Peace," as local magistrates, its business was somewhat limited, and the 
people in the rural districts better accommodated. From the Court of Appeal 
sprang ihe Court of Chancery, with the Chancellor at the head, a court gov 



EDWARD I. 67 

Beginning of the Wars with Scotland. The Khig 
of Scotland having died, thirteen claimants appeared 
for the vacant throne, of whom Robert Bruce and John 
Baliol were the most prominent. Unable to settle 
peacefully the question of their claims, it was referred, 
in 1291, to the arbitration of Edward of England. Ed- 
ward decided in favor of Baliol, on condition that the 
latter should acknowledge himself a vassal of the Eng- 
lish crown. Edward's claim to superiority was based 
on the fact already stated on a previous page, that Wil- 
liam, a Scottish king in the time of Henry II., being 
taken in battle, was held in captivity until he acknowl- 
edged the King of England as his feudal superior. 
Baliol received the kingdom at the hands of Edward, 
but soon rebelled against the humiliations imposed 
upon him, and thence arose those fierce and bloody 
wars between the two countries, that continued through 
successive reisras to desolate the border lands of both. 
The earlier ballad and legend, wild and weird like the 
Scotch character itself, and the later tale and song with 
their warp of fact and woof of fiction, have involved 
the whole story of the struggle between England and 
Scotland in the fascinations of romance. 

Battle of Dunbar. In the battle of Dunbar, in 1296, 
the Scots suffered a signal defeat. Edinburgh was be- 
sieged, Sterling taken, and finally, at Montrose Abbey, 
Baliol surrendered into Edward's hands all right and 
title to the kingdom of Scotland. The Scottish kings 
were wont to be crowned at Scone, on a fragment of 

erned by the principles of equity, and not common law, and designed to have 
jurisdiction, when the technicalities of law, and the inability of* the other 
courts to vary from fixed methods of procedure, prevented the administration 
of exact justice. 



68 EDWARD I. 

rock, called the Stone of Destiny. There was » 
Scotci tradition that wherever that stone might be, 
there the Scots would reign. TSy Edward's order, it 
was taken to Westminster Abbey, then just completed, 
and placed beneath the Coronation Chair, in which 
all the kings of England are crowned. 

William Wallace. Bui Scotland found a champion 
in the patriot William Wallace. Mustering an army 
of stalwart peasants, he put to flight the English knights 
at Stirling. Castle after castle fell into his hands, until 
all Scotland was once more free from English rule. 
He pushed his victorious arms across the border and 
ravaged the north of England. The war-like Edward, 
who had been abroad while these events were occur- 
ring, now returned, and putting himself at the head of 
a large force, brought "Wallace to bay at Falkirk, in 
1298. The latter had been appointed Guardian of the 
Realm of Scotland, but proud Scottish lords, scorning 
to serve under one of humble birth, forsook, if they 
did not betray him, at Falkirk, and Wallace was utterly 
defeated. 

For seven years, outlawed, and with a price upon 
his head, hiding among his native mountains, he waged 
a pitiless war on the English, and was then basely 
betrayed by a Scotch noble. He was taken, in chains, 
to London, and there tried as a traitor, with a crown 
of oak leaves upon his head, to indicate that he was king 
of outlaws. Being condemned to death, he was tortured 
and executed in the most horrible manner. From lowland 
moor ft) highland glen, from peasant cot to lordly 
castle, sped the story of his cruel death. What Wal- 
lace living failed to do, Wallace dead achieved. Scotch 



EDWARD I. 



65 



jealousies died. The fierce resentment that united aD 
hearts in a stern resolve to avenge his cruel death, 
united them in the nobler resolve to free their country 
from the hated English yoke. 

Robert Bruce. In four months all the clans were 
.n arms under their second champion, Robert Bruce. 
Edward, bowed with years, but resolute still, once 
more took the Held. But he sank under exertion and 
excitement, and died just as his army, at Burgh-on- 
Sands, came in sight of the blue hills of Scotland. 
In his dying moments ho enjoined upon his son to 
prosecute the war with vigor, and even desired that his 
dead body should be carried at the head of the army 
ns it marched. 

Character of Edward I. Edward I. was a wise legis- 
lator, a skilful soldier, and a gallant knight. Though a 
despot in disposition, and doggedly tenacious of the 
royal prerogative, he was just and even generous to 
law-abiding subjects. To others he was severe and 
even cruel. The Jews tampered with the coinage, 
and three hundred of the guilty died on the scaffold ; 
and finally, in 1290, the whole Jewish people, number- 
ing sixteen thousand souls, were banished from the 
realm. His natural sternness was tempered by gentle- 
ness and affection in his domestic relations, but ho 
would not shield from the consequences of his crime, 
even his own son, who once went to prison like a com- 
mon felon. Under the pressure of want, Edward at 
onetime levied money contrary to the Charter ; but, 
convinced of his error, he acknowledged it in tears, in 
the presence of his Parliament, and reformed. In this 
reign Parliaments became more regular and met per- 



70 EDWARD II. 

manently at Westminster, but as yet the Commons hac 
no voice in matters of legislation, simply voting money. 

Edward II., 1307 to 1327 — 20 Years. Plantagenet. 

Character of Edward II. Edward II. was weak, 
though childishly wilful, and utterly destitute of the 
knightly qualities that shone so brightly in his father's 
character. He had neither vigor nor virtue enough, to 
be just himself, or to enforce justice among his people; 
and much less did he rise even to a faint conception of 
the one grand purpose of his father's life, the extension 
of English dominion over the whole island. Ho 
had but a single aim, indulgence in sensual pleasures. 

Piers Gaveston. The first five years of Edward's reign 
were spent in contentions with his barons, on account 
of one Piers Gaveston, a dissolute Gascon knight, 
to whose corrupting influence he had wholly sur- 
rendered himself. One of Edward the First's dying 
injunctions to his son was, never to recall the banished 
Gaveston. This injunction was forgotten by the sou, 
the moment the father was dead ; and the recalled 
favorite acquired, besides his old influence over Ed- 
ward, entire control of the government. But it was 
Gaveston's insolent manners, and his stinging witticisms 
on the barons, quite as much as his assumption of 
authority, that won for him their cordial hatred. Twice 
by force of arms they compelled him to leave the king- 
dom, and twice the infatuated king recalled him. He 
was seized by the barons on his re-appearance in 1312, 
and thrown into Warwick Castle, whose lord he had 
nick-named the " Black Dog of the Wood." After a 



EDWARD II. 71 

form of trial, he was taken to Blacklow Hill, a little rise 
of giound a short distance from the castle, near the 
river Avon, and there beheaded. 

The quarrel between the king and the barons over 
the worthless knight is only important as out of it 
came an advance in constitutional liberty. Parliament 
established the right to investigate the public expendi- 
tures and punish bad advisers of the king. 

Bannockbuni, A. D. 1314. While Edward and the 
barons were wasting their time in petty strife, the 
Scots under Bruce were gaining their independence. 
Linlithgow, Roxburgh, Edinburgh and Perth succes- 
sively fell into their hands. * 

Stirling Castle was besieged, and its governor, under 
the pressure of want, agreed to surrender on a certain 
day, the Feast of St. John, if not relieved by the Eng- 
lish. Edward, roused from his lethargy by the critical 
state of affairs at Stirling, hastily gathered an army of 
a hundred thousand men and pressed forward to its 
relief. 

He was met at Bannockburn by Bruce, at the 
head of thirty thousand Scots. In the battle that 
followed, the English suffered the most disastrous 
defeat, considering the disparity of the forces 
engaged, to be found in the history of English 
warfare. Edward's treasure, and all the vast material 

•The accounts of the sieges of castles held by English garrisons are full of 
romantic interest. Linlithgow was taken somewhat alter the manner of 
ancient Troy. A Scotch peasant had been in the habit of supplying the gar- 
rison with forage. lie came one day with a load of hay in which Scotch sol- 
diers were concealed. Having crossed the drawbridge, he placed his load in 
such a position that the gates could not be shut. The concealed soldiers, sud- 
denly appearing, held the gates until reinforcements lying in ambush came 
np.and the garrison was overpowered. 



72 EDWARD II. 

of his army, fell into the hands of Bruce, while his 
panic-stricken soldiers were butchered without mercy. 
The Scots again ravaged the northern counties. Fresh 
armies were raised by the English, but little was 
accomplished. 

After the battle of Bauuockburn, Edward fell under 
the influence of two new favorites, the Spencers, 
father and son. It is but the story of Gaveston 
repeated, a brief use and abuse of power, a short 
but desperate struggle with the enraged barons, and a 
violent death at their hands. 

Queen Isabella in France. In 1325, the year 
before the fall of the Spencers, Queen Isabella had 
been sent by Edward to the court of her brother, 
Charles IV. of France, to arrange terms of peace be- 
tween the two kings. She accomplished her mission 
in a manner more favorable to France than to England, 
but declined to return at Edward's earnest entreaty, 
pleading her fear of the Spencers. She had little love 
for her husband, and had formed a violent attachment 
for Roger Mortimer, who had been condemned to the 
Tower on account of his enmity to the Spencers, but 
had escaped to France. He became the chief officer 
in Isabella's household. While abroad, the Queen, 
who was accompanied by her son Edward, Prince of 
Wales, visited the Court of William, Count of Hainault, 
and while there arranged a marriage contract between 
the Prince and Philippa, daughter of the Count. 

Deposition and Death of Edward. In 1326, with 
a small force furnished by the Count, Isabella returned 
to England, and at once raised the standard of revolt, 
ostensibly to overthrow the Spencers, but in fact to 



EDWARD II. 73 

gain for herself and Mortimer the supreme power. 
She was hailed as a deliverer by all classes, and soon 
had an overwhelming force at her command. The king, 
deserted and helpless, embarked for the Isle of Limdy, 
off Bristol Channel, but was driven upon the Welsh 
coast and landed at Swansea. He soon surrendered 
himself to his enemies, and was hurried like a felon 
from place to place, and finally lodged in Berkeley 
Castle. 

Parliament, in 1327, declared the throne to be vacant; 
and thus anus established the parliamentary right to de- 
pose the king. The young prince was crowned under 
the title of Edward III. To satisfy the feigned scruples 
of Isabella, Parliament extorted from the captive king 
a formal abdication of the throne. Edward never left 
Berkeley Castle. Its gloomy walls one autumn night 
rang with heart-rending shrieks, and the next day the 
distorted features of the dead king told only too 
plainly the tale of his cruel death. A few years after 
this, Mortimer, when about to expiate his crimes on the 
gallows, confessed that he sent two hired assassins 
to murder the hapless king. 

Edward III., 1327 to 1377—50 years. Plantagenet. 

The Regency. Edward HE. became a powerful 
monarch, and his reign was one of the longest and 
most brilliant in the history of England. Being 
crowned at the early age of fourteen, a Council of 
Regency, composed of twelve principal lords, was 
appointed to administer the government during the 
minority. But this Council being controlled by Queen 



74 EDWARD III. 

Isabella and Mortimer, the real power still remained 
in their hands. 

Treaty of Northampton. The Scots under James, 
Earl of Douglas, continued their ravages across the 
border, and the young king raised an army and 
marched against them. But the light-armed and well- 
mounted Scots, skilfully avoiding battle and eluding 
pursuit, forced Edward to retire for want of supplies. 
Finally, in 1328, by the Treaty of Northampton, the 
independence of Scotland was acknowledged. 

Fall of Isabella and Mortimer. Edward, now 
eighteen years of age, resolved to take the reins of 
government into his own hands. Isabella and Morti- 
mer occupied a strong castle at Nottingham. Every 
night the keys of the castle gates were brought to the 
bed-side of the suspicious queen, while guards were 
stationed at every avenue of approach. Under the 
guidance of the governor, a small but trusty band of 
Edward's friends entered the castle at night, through a 
subterranean passage, and being joined by Edward 
himself, took its garrison completely by surprise. 
Mortimer was seized and borne away, the queen piteously 
entreating her son "to spare her gentle Mortimer." 
From this moment, Edward was king in fact as well 
as name. lie summoned a Parliament, before whom 
Mortimer was brought charged with various offences, 
including the murder of Edward II. He was pro- 
nounced guilty and hanged on an elm at Tyburn, in 
1330, while Queen Isabella was consigned to life-long 
imprisonment in Castle Risings. She lingered twenty- 
seven years in hopeless captivity, visited once a year 
by her son, the king. 



Longitude West 3 from fir. 



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v -T V * 







honaitude Ea 



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KDWARD III. 75 

Halidon Hill. Robert Bruce, the heroic old king 
of Scotland, died in V<'>2{), and the crown descended 
to David his son, then but seven years of age. His- 
tory now repeals itself. Edward Baliol, son of John 
Ruliol who figured in the reign of the first Edward, 
inserted his right to the sovereign power, as his father 
had done before him. Defeating the forces of Bruce, 
near Perth, ho seized the power, while Bruce fled to 
France. To gain the support of Edward of England, 
he, too, agreed to reign as a vassal of the: English 
crown. The indignant Scots sprang to arms and drove 
him from the kingdom. 

After a show of reluctance, on account of the 
treaty still in force between the two countries, 
Edward pronounced in favor of Baliol. Raising a 
large army, he marched into Scotland, and, by one 
great battle at Ilalidon Hill, in 1333, placed Baliol 
again upon the throne, and compelled Urucc once 
more to take refuge in France. The very name 
of Baliol was hateful to the Scots, and upon the with- 
drawal of the English army, he was a, second lime 
driven from the kingdom. 

The " Hundred Years' War " with Franco. Tho 
cruise of Bruce had been warmly supported by the King 
of France, and Edward, convinced that English 
supremacy in Scotland could never be made secure, so 
long as the ships and soldiers of France were at, the call 
of the Scots, resolved to strike a decisive blow at 
France herself. Two convenient pretexts were at 
hand, the encroachments of the French on the English 
possessions on the continent, and the claim of Ed- 
ward to the French throne itself. 



76 EDWARD TTT. 

The war that now began between England and France 

is known as the " Hundred Years' War," because, with 
intervals of peace, it continued for a hundred years.* 
Though English kings won a world-wide renown, and 
English soldiers covered themselves with glory, during 
its- progress, it ended in the loss to the English people 
ot all their possessions in France, except Calais. 

Cressy, A. I). 134-0. The first conflicts were inde- 
cisive. Edward gained a great naval victory over the 
French, oft* Sluys, in the English Channel. Landing 
some years afterwards on the French coast, he won the 
famous field of Cressy. It was in this battle that Ed- 
ward, Prince of Wales, called the Black Prince, from 
the color of his armor, bravely won his spurs, entering 
upon a career that, for brilliancy of achievement and the 
splendid exhibition of knightly qualities, finds no paral- 
lel in the annals of chivalry. 

Calais. Five days after the battle of Cressy, Ed- 
ward laid siege to Calais, a strongly fortified town 
on the seaboard, opposite the cliffs of Dover, which 
French privateers had long made their haunt, while 
lying in wait for unguarded English traders. In 



• The ground of Edward's claim will be seen in the following statement: - 
Philip IV., predecessor of the present King Charles IV., of France, left three 
ecus and a (laughter, Isabella, who became the wife of Edward II. of England, 
The daughter was the youngest. The sons left only female issue, while the 
daughter left male issue, Edward III. ol England. Edward was thus tile near- 
est male heir. It was maintained by the French that Edward's claim was 
Darrcd by the Saliolaw, a law that had long prevailed in France, forbidding 
jemale succession. Edward sought to evade (lie force of this law by asserting 
that, though a female could not inherit the power, she could transmit it to her 
male descendants. To this the French replied that a female could not trans- 
mit a right she did not herself possess. The French practice was in strict 
accordance with their theory, for on the death of Fhilip's sons, his heirs direct 
being females, or ihe issue of females, were passed over, and the crown was 
given, without opposition, to Philip <>f Val<>i-s a nephew ol' Philip IV. 



EDWAKl) III. 77 

twelve mouths it was starved into surrender, but the 
fortitude of its inhabitants, and the heroism of the im- 
mortal six, who offered their lives as a ransom for the 
people, will challenge the admiration of all ages. 
Though Edward's army had been greatly wasted during 
the siege, and he had threatened to put the whole city 
to the sword, on account of its obstinate defence, he 
promised, at last, to spare the lives of its inhabitants, 
if six principal citizens, bare-headed, barefooted, and 
with halters about their necks, would bring to him the 
keys of the town and castle, and deliver themselves up 
to his will. Six noble men offered themselves for the 
sacrifice. They presented to Edward the keys, and 
were ordered to instant death. But Edward's gentle 
Queen Philippa, falling on her knees before him, begged 
their lives, and they were spared. 

Neville's Cross. The Scots, who were in alliance 
with France, taking advantage of Edward's absence, 
appeared in large force in the north of England, under 
the command of Bruce, their king. They were de- 
feated by Philippa (who had not yet joined her husband 
in France), in the battle of Neville's Cross, Bruce him- 
self being taken captive. The exhaustion of an expen- 
sive foreign war, and the ravages of a fearful plague, 
called the Black Death, forced Edward to make a tem- 
porary peace with France. 

Poictiers, A.D. 1356. But war was renewed in 
1355, by the Black Prince, who inarched from his 
Duchy of Aquitaine with a small but well-appointed 
force, and penetrated to the very heart of Frauec. 
When about to return laden with spoils, he found him- 
self opposed, a few miles from the city of Poictiers, by 



78 EDWAliD III. 

the French king at the head of an overwhelming army. 

By a wise choice of ground and a skilful disposition of 
his little force, he inflicted upon the French host, a ter- 
rible defeat. Among the prisoners was John, the 
French king, who was broughl by the gallant prince to 
London. Edward now li<dd two captive kings. Bruce 
was released in L357, after a period of eleven years, 
and, by the peace of Bretigny, in L360, John was ran- 
somed for three million gold crowns. Failing to raise 
the ransom money, the chivalric king returned to a 
life-long captivity. By the same treaty, Edward relin- 
quished his claim to the French crown, holding his 
French possessions, no longer as a vassal, but as an 
independent sovereign. Up to this period his career 
had been one of brilliant success. 

Loss of French Possessions. Pedro the Cruel, king 
of Castile, having been dethroned by his kinsman, 1 lenry 
ofTrastamare aided by the French, fled to theCourtof 
the Black Prince, at Bordeaux. The latter, prompted by 
a. chivalric impulse as well as enmity to France, crossed 
the Pyrenees ;it the head of a large army, and, by :i single 
battle at Navarrete, placed the fugitive king again on his 
throne. But the perfidious Pedro broke his promise 
to pay the expenses of the war and left his destitute and 
suffering allies to their fate. Weakened by hunger and 
hardship, they fell easy victims to a deadly fever that 
swept through their camp. The Black Prince, utterly 
broken in health and burdened with debt, recrossed the 
Pyrenees with only a miserable remnant of the splendid 
army with which he began the campaign. King John 
died soon after returning to captivity, and his son,( lharles 
the Wise, finding the time a favorable one, renewed the 



EDWARD [II. 79 

war with the English. In a last effort to save the French 
provinces, the Black Prince only sullied his knightly 
honor by a wanton massacre of the inhabitants of Li- 
moges, and John of Gaunt, marched from Calais 
to Bordeaux only to see his magnificent army waste; 
away amid the snows of Auvergne, or fall a prey to the 
sleepless French who hung closely about its line of march. 
One by one the English possessions were wrested away, 
until, in 1874, nothing remained of their once splendid 
empire in France, hut Calais, Bordeaux, and Bayonne. 
The Good Parliament. At home were misrule; and 
discontent. Queen Philippa having died, the enfeebled 
old king fell under the baneful influence of one Alice 
Perrers, who not only ruled the royal court but 
sat beside the judges and directed the administration of 
just ice. Through her influence, John of Gaunt, Duke of 
Lancaster, became almost supreme in the government, 
appointing its principal officers and seeking to pave his 
way to the throne. The Good Parliament, summoned 
in 1376, bravely undertook to reform the abuses of 
the state. It was nobly supported by the Black 
Prince, who had returned to England and was now 
devotinar his last energies to the work of reform. 
By petitions, which were then the basis of legislation, 
corrupt officials were removed and punished, even John 
of Gaunt, the author of many of the prevalent abuses, 
being compelled to retire ; Alice Perrers was forbidden 
under pain of banishment, to interfere with the courts ; 
and no less than twelve petitions were directed against 
the various claims of the Pope, and the drain of English 
money to Rome. But the work of reform was brought 
to a sudden close; by the death of the Black Princeand the 



80 EDWARD QI. 

return of John of Gaunt to power, [none thing the latter 
had been in harmony with the Good Parliament, in re- 
sisting ill" demands of the pope. Elehada powerful ally 
in John Wiokliife, who, beginuing with a denunciation of 
the various orders of friars, ended in a bold attack on the 
doctrines of the church. Thusbeganthc First Reformation. 

Tho tinglisli Language. I ' 1 "' A.nglo-Saxon or 
English bad always boon the language of the 
peasantry, Latin tho language of business and the 
graver Literature, and Frenoh the language of society 
and the Lighter Literature. During this reigna marked 
ohange took place. 'The Aaiglo-Saxon, with an admix- 
ture of both Latin and French, was slowly becom- 
ing tin 1 national tongue. Tho writings of Wiokliffe, 
sent broadcast over tho Land, gave both shape and 
impetus to the movement. Wickliffe may be called 
the morning star o\' English prose, ;is Chauoer has been 
of English poetry. Towards (lie close of Edward's 
reign, the English Language was taught in the schools 
instead of Frenoh, and a statute, passed in lo< r >7, 
required its use in the courts (^' justice. Even Frenoh 
romanoes began to be* translated into English. 

The English People. There had always existed 
feelings of hut red and jealousy among the people o\' 
the different races. The native Briton could never 

forgive his Savon conqueror, and both alike detested 

the proud and domineering Norman. 'The reign oi 
Edward witnessed the blending of those discordant 

races into one harmonious people. They fought , side by 

side, at Cressy and Poiotiers, and their animosities 

melted away amidst rejoicings of victory. From t lint 
time they Looked hack with a common pride to a glori- 



EDWARD III. 81 

ous past, and forward with a common hope to a more 
glorious future. 
Change in the Methods of Warfare. A change was 

gradually taking place in the methods of warfare. 
Hitherto, mail-clad knights had been the main reliance 
in battle, but Edward, following the example of William 
Wallace at Falkirk, had won his most, brilliant cam- 
paigns with English archers. At Cressyand Poictiers, 
the knights of France were first thrown into confusion 
by clouds of arrows sped with unerring aim by English 
bowmen. It is said that cannon were iirst used on the 
battle-field, at Cressy; but heavy cannon, throwing 
stones, were used before, for siege purposes. 

The Two Houses of Parliament. Edward had in- 
creased the number of towns allowed to send represen- 
tatives to Parliament, making the latter so large, that it 
was found necessary to divide it into two distinct bodies, 
the one composed of lords and bishops, called tin' 
House of Lords, and the other, of representatives of 
towns and counties, called the House of Commons. 
And thus Avas perfected the legislative branch of the 
government. The Witenagemot of the Saxons had 
developed into the Great Council of the Normaus, and 
that, first into the single Parliament of Earl Simon, 
and now into its perfected form of two independent 
Houses. From this moment, the Commons, who had 
been overawed in the presence of lords and bishops, 
assumed a more independent character. It is a signi- 
ficant fact, in this connection, that Edward, forced 
by his necessities during the French wars, confirmed 
the Great Charter thirteen times. 



82 BDWABD III. 

Death of Kdwanl. Enfeebled by age, and over 
whelmed by the disasters that had befallen him, Ed- 
ward survived the Black Prince but a year, dying in 
l.')77. Mis last years were gloomy, and his death 
peculiarly sad, and a striking commentary on the vanity 
of human glory. A.s the end drew near, he was utterly 
forsaken. Even Alice Perrers snatched a ring from 
his unresisting finger, and (led. A.t the last moment, « 
compassionate priest, entered the silent chamber, and 
held a crucifix before the fasl glazing eyes of the dying 
king. It is difficult to realize, thai this is the Edward 

who was the very prince of that proud race, the Plan- 

tagenots, the hero of the French wars, and the pride 
of England. Chivalry was then at its zenith, aud Ed- 
ward's court had been Chivalry's capital. Hither gal- 
lant knights had been WOllt to gather from all pails of 
Europe, to mingle in the scenes of Feudal splendor, 
that constantly dazzlocl tho eyes of the wondering 
people. But, whether in the friendly lists of the tour- 
nament, or the deadly shock of battle, Edward's 
plume had always been pre-eminent. 

Richard 11., 1377 to 1399—22 years. Plantagenet. 

The Regency. No king ever came to the English 
throne more heartily welcomed, or left it less regretted, 
than Richard II. The fact that he was the son of the 
Black Prince, that mirror of Chivalry and idol ol' the 
people, opeued all hearts to him. lie was handsome, 
but effeminate, a mere lover oi' pleasure and royal dis- 
play, ffia retinue numbered ten thousand persons, 
and its passage through the country was dreaded little 



RICHAKD II. 83 

less lli.'in thai of an invading army. Being l>ut eleven 
years of age when be inherited the crown, a regency 

was appointed. 

Causes of Wat Tyler's Rebellion. Four years after 
his accession, the Peasants' Revolt, or Wat Tyler's Re- 
bellion, broke out. This revolt is worthy of very brief 

mention, considered alone in the incidents attending it. 
It had none of the " pomp and circumstance of war," 

and was little better than tumultuous gatherings <>f ill- 
organized mobs, whose subsidence was as sudden as 
their uprising. But the social and political questions 
involved Lift it into a plane of grave importance. It 
was :i revolt founded on social distinctions, tlio begin- 
ning of an irrepressible conflict between the poor and 

humble oppressed, and the rich and noble oppressor; 

of an antagonism bel ween labor and capital, that , in one 

form or another, has continued unabated to this day. 

Emancipation. During the preceding reigns, the 

serfs had, in various ways, gradually risen to the con- 
dition of freemen. The work of emancipation had been 
hastened by the necessities of the lords themselves, 
who, to maintain the pomp and splendor of Chivalry, 
expensive even in time of peace, but doubly so in time 

of war, resorted to every artifice to raise money. It 
was a ready and productive way, to commute the 

services of the serfs for their est hnated value in money. 
Edward himself, to raise funds for the French wars, 
sent agents to all the royal estates to sell to the serfs 
their freedom. So that bythe middle of the fourteenth 
century, free labor had, to a considerable extent, taken 
the place of slave labor, and was then abundant and 
cheap. 



81 RICHARD II. 

The Black Death. In 1348, in the reign of Edward 
III, a terrible plague, called the Black Death, originat- 
ing in Asia and traversing the continent of Europe, 
swept England as with the besom of destruction. 
One-half its inhabitants were carried off, but it was 
especially malignant amorg the lower classes. At its 
close, labor was scarce and high, and as it naturally 
sought the best market, in some sections harvests 
could not be gathered for want of help. 

The Statute of Laborers. The landowners appeal- 
ing to Parliament for relief, an Act, called the " Statute 
of Laborers," was passed, re-establishing the old low 
price of labor, and compelling the laboring classes to 
seek employment within the limits of their own par- 
ishes. This virtually restored the old and odious 
system of serfdom, creating the most intense discon- 
tent among the peasantry. They gathered in large 
numbers at the different centres, to listen to the 
harangues of their leaders depicting in bitter language 
the wretched 'condition of the poor, and the luxurious 
estate of the rich. By the close of Edward's reign, the 
oppressed peasantry were ripe for revolt. 

The Breaking out of the Rebellion. In the fourth 
year of Richard's reign, a tax of one shilling was im- 
posed on every person in the kingdom, above fifteen 
years of age. It was not the amount of the tax, but 
the fact that the poor were taxed as heavily as me 
rich, that kindled the smouldering spark into a flame 
of rebellion. The most formidable rising took place 
in Kent, where a hundred thousand peasants gathered 
under Wat Tyler, and taking up their line of march 
for London, poured into the city in a vast disorderly 



RICnARD II. 85 

mass. Many excesses were committed, but the fury 
of the multitude was chiefly directed against those 
concerned in the odious tax and previous oppressive 
legislation. The king, who at tirst had taken refuge 
in the Tower, met them by appointment at Mile-end, 
just out of London. During the conference, Tyler 
placed his hand on the dagger at his side, and was 
instantly stricken down by one of the king's attendants. 
The lives of the royal party were in imminent peril, for 
the bows of the enraged insurgents were already bent, 
when the king, riding hastily forward, exclaimed, "Tyler 
was a traitor ; I will be your leader." They quickly 
gathered about their new and youthful leader, praying 
for liberty for themselves and their children. This 
achievement of Richard's seems almost heroic, and is all 
the more conspicuous from the long and ignoble career 
that followed it. Richard professed to yield to their 
prayers, and thirty clerks were set to work preparing 
and distributing free papers. The pacified insurgents 
began to break up and return home. In the meantime 
the nobles were assembling their forces and hastening 
to the support of the king. The latter, false to his 
word, quickly cancelled all the free papers he had issued, 
and caused the leading rebels in all the towns to be 
tried and punished. 

Though the revolts were suppressed and the peasants 
nominally returned to a state of serfdom, the newly 
awakened desire foi personal liberty could not be 
extinguished, and the work of emancipation went slow- 
ly but surely forward, until, in a century and a half, 
serfdom may be said to have disappeared from England. 



86 RICHARD II. 

Wickliffe and the First Reformation. The Peas- 
ants' revolt , charged, as it was, by Catholics, to the 
seditious teachings of Wickliffe and his followers, was 
a serious Mow to the reformation.* Wickliffe was for- 
saken by his most powerful friends, including the Duke 
of Lancaster himself. Bu1 there was another reason 
for this defection, — Wickliffe's extreme views in regard 

to some ot* the tenets of the ehureh. So Long as lie 

merely exposed the corruptions of the clergy, he was 
applauded hv all classes, bul when he assailed the cardinal 

doctrines of the ehureh, lie lost the sympathy of all good 

Catholics. Wickliffe now displayed the real greatness of 
his mind, and the versatility of his genius. Instead of the 
scholarly arguments in classic Latin he had hitherto 
addressed to the greal and Learned, he now directed his 
appeals in plain A.nglo-Saxou to the masses of the Eng- 
lish people. Pamphlet after pamphlet against both the 
doctrines and the practice oi' the church, issued from 

► The teachings ofsomeofthe leaders, ami so the tendency of the times, 
are clearly indicated In the following Bentitnents, attributed to John Ball, 
the" mad priest of Kent": -"Good people, things will never go well in Eng 
land so long as goods be no! in common, an l bo long as there be villains 
(simply vassals) ami gontlomen. By what right are they, whom we call 
lords, greater folk than we? On whit grounds have they deserved it? win- 
do they hold us in serfage? if we ail oame of the same father and mother, ot 

Adam and Eve, hOW e in they say or prove that they are better than we, if it 

he m>t that they make us gain for them, by our toil, what they spend in theii 

pride? They are elethed in their velvet and warm in their furs and theii 
ermines, while we are covered With rags. They have wine and spices and 
fair bread, and wo eat oat-cake and straw and water to drink. They have 
leisure and tine houses. We have pain and labor, the rain and the wind in 
thft fields. And yet it is Of us and of our tod that those men hold their state- ' 
The following couplet i> also attributed to Ball: — 

" When Adam delved and Eve span, 

Who was then the gentleman?" 

it is hardly to be wondered at, that multitudes of ignorant men, bitterly con - 

BOious Of their ow n wretchedness and the sumptuous estate Of their masters, 
both equally undeserved, in their minds, should enlist in an enterprise thai 
promised to make them ail more equal. 



RICHARD II. 87 

his prolific pen, and \s as sent broadcast over the land. 
An order of preachers, railed the Simple Priests, was 
Instituted to disseminate his doctrines. Such progress 
was made, that "every other man you met was a Lol- 
lard," * to use the hitter language of a careful observer 
oi' the times. The crown, at last, came to the aid of 
the church ; Wlekliffe was banished from Oxford, 
and his writings condemned as heretical and ordered 
to lie burned. Retiring to Lutterworth, he devoted 
his energies to the last and grandest work oi' his life, 
the translation of the Bible into English. December 
30th, L384, he hada stroke of paralysis, while attending 
mass in the parish church, and passed peacefully away 
the next day. 

Otterburn and Chevy Chase. There is little o\' 
interest in the foreign relations of this reign. The 
border lands of both England and Scotland were 
wasted by hostile incursions. In 1388, occurred the 
battle oi' Otterburn, a mere border-fight between two 
hostile noblemen, Percy and Douglas, ami their retain- 
ers, but made forever memorable by that celebrated 
ballad, " Chevy Chase." 

Chaucer. In thereignsof Edward III. and Richard 11. 
lived Chaucer, the " Morning Star o\' English poetry," 
whose " Canterbury Tales," the most famousoi his works. 
is still read with delight. Thirty pilgrims from all classes 
in society are represented as travelling together from 
London to Canterbury, to visit the shrine oi St. 
Thomas, and whiling away the tedium of the journey 

* The name Lollard, derived from the old German lo/i,n or Mien, to sing, 
was iii-t applied to Uio Reformers as an epithet <>f derision, from their prac 
ticeof singing hvmns in their meetings. 



MS RICHARD 11. 

by tolling stories, which furnish the most accurate 
picture of the manners :m<l customs of the limes that 

has come (low u to us. 

Tyranny of Richard. Richard was in a constant 
quarrel with his uncles and guardians. When twenty- 
two years of age, he assumed entire control of the 
government. After reigning a lew years with moder- 
ation ami justice, he become more despotic than any 
of his predecessors. V>\ a cunningly devised statute, 
granting him a life income, and placing the legislative 

power in the hands of a select number of lords and 

burgesses, Parliament was virtually abolished. Though 

the king now seemed more secure in the possession of 
power than ever, his downfall was near at hand. 

Deposition of lUchnnl. A personal quarrel having 
arisen between two young noblemen, an appeal was 
made to "wager of battle." Ou the day appointed for 
the contest, and in the presence o{' the multitude gath- 
ered to witness it, Richard banished both from the 

kingdom, and soon after seized the estates, io which 

one of them, Henry Bolingbroke, his own cousin, 
had fallen heir. Taking advantage of the absence 
of the king in Ireland, Henry Landed at Ravenspur, 
in Yorkshire, and raised tin- standard of revolt, llis 
twenty followers increased to sixty thousand fighting 
men by the lime he reached London. 

Richard hastened back to England, only to fall into 

Henry's hands, sutler dethronement by Act of Parlia- 
ment, and disappear within the walls oi' the Tower, 
With Richard, end tin 1 Plantagcnet kings, on the 
whole an able though a tyrannical race. But the worst 
of these kings were the best t\»r England in the end, 



KH1I AK1> II. 



89 



for with intolerable tyranny came rebellion, and ulti- 
mate relief. Rebellion founded in a just cause does 
not often end in mere bloodshed and anarchy, but in a 
permanent advance injustice, liberty, ami law. 

page 51). 
Trial by Jury has sometimes been attributed to Alfred the Great; but there 
iseverj reason to believe thai the jurors oi Alfred's time, like those of other 
Saxon kings, were only Compurgators. For fifty years after Henry's Assise, 
the only forms "i trial used alter presentment by the jury, were the Ordeal ol 
Battle and the Judgment of God. At tin- Fourth Lateran Council, beld at 
Borne in 1216, Henr) III. being King of England, all Ordeals were abolished 
and went rapidly out of use; but the English statute authorizing the Ordeal ol 
Battle was not repealed till 1818. The year before, a man charged with the 
orlme of murder claimed the right, under the ancient law, to challenge his 
accuser to mortal combat, which the court allowed. Many steps have been 
required to bring Trial by Jury to its present perfection, in the reign of Ed- 
ward 1.. pei sons especially acquainted with the facts in any case presented for 
trial, were added to the jury. Butasearlyas the reign of Edward in. the 

jury was divided into two distinct bodies Of jurors ami witnesses, the jurors 
ceaBing to be special witnesses, though they still made use of their personal 
knowledge of the facts in making up a verdict, ami the added witnesses ceas- 
ing to be jurors. From this l iuie the witnesses merely gave testimony, and 
the jurors decided whether it was sufficiently grave to warrant the indictment 
of the accused. Thus was the way opened for the rise of the Pettj (fury, as 
triers of the issue, and the limitation id' the original jury to the work ol pre- 
sentment. In the reign of Charles 11. the principle was established that jurors 
shall not be called in question on account ^l' their verdiet ; and in the reign of 
George IV- it was enacted that "jurors need only be good ami lawful men of 
the body of the country." 

In the jury as established by the Assize of Henry 11., though nominally a 
jury of presentment, we tlnd the germs of the Trial Jury. Presentment in 
certain criminal oases was equivalent to conviction; tor, though the sus- 
pected person safely passed the Ordeal that followed presentment, it he tvas 
charged with inunler or other felonious crime, or was of bad reputation, he 
was compelled to abjure the realm. Thus Henry's jury performed, to a cer- 
tain extent, the functions of both Grand ami Trial juries. It is not to be won- 
dered at, then, that its verdict was awaited by the prisoner and his friends 
with much the same anxiety that, in criminal eases, attends the action of the 
Trial Jury at the present time. 



CHAPTER VI. 



House of Lancaster, 1399 to 14GI — 62 years. 



HENRY IV.. Bolingbroke. 
HENRY V. of Monmouth. 



HENRY VI. of Windsor. 



Henry IV., 1399 to 1413 - U years. 



Henry's Title, Henry IV. gained the orownbyhis 
prowess. Conscious that his title* was defective, and 

his possession of power precarious, he sought to win. 
to his support those most powerful elements in the 
State, the nobility and the church. To the nobility, 
flushefj with pride at the memories oi' Cressy and Poio- 
tiers, hut burning with shame :it the loss ol' Aquitaine, 
he held out the gains and the glory oi' another French 
campaign. Incessant domestic troubles prevented the 
renewal of the war with France, but hoping to gain the 

• To explain : Ttae four eldest Bona of Edward [II. wore Edward, the Blaok 
Prince; Lionel, Dukeof Clarenoe; John of Gaunt, Duke > i Lanoaster; and 
Edmund, Duke of York. Edmund, Earl of March, was descended from Lionel 
iiu- Beoond, and Henry i\\, from John of Gaunt, ctu< third son of Edward in., 
so thai when the eldest branob of the royal family became extinct, as it did at 
t in- death ol Richard 11 . son ol the Blaok Prince, the crown belonged of right 
to the Earl of March, the representative of the Beoond branch. Tins asurpa" 
lion of Henry [V. was all the more glaring, sinoo it really ooourred before the 
death of Richard u.. anil it led, some sixtj years later, In tiio reign of Henry 
vi . to ■ Beriea of wars, called the "Wars of the Roses." One other fact ought 
to be mentioned In this connection. Shortly after this usurpation, the Beoond 
and fourth branches ol the royal family wore united by the marriage of theii 
two surviving representatives, &.nne, and Riohard of Cambridge. Riohard, 
r>nk.o of Fork, the Issue ol tins marriage, was the one, In the reign of Henry 
\'i.. to press the olalnia of his house to the throne. 

EN) 



HENRI IV. 91 

favor of the church conscious of the steady growth of 
reform Ideas, he began a most bitter persecutiou of the 
reformers, 

The First Martyr at the Stake. Bj an Ad of Par- 
liameut, called the "Statute of Heretics," the bisliopa 
were empowered to imprison all writers, teachers, and 
preachers of heresy, and, ou their refusal to abjure, to 
surrender thom to the civil power for punishment. 
William Salter, a London preacher, was the first mar- 
tyr at the stake. Being condemned by the bishops, ho 
was handed over to the civil authorities and burned, in 
accordance with the statute, in 1 tOl. 

Henry IV. lias the unenviable reputation of being 
the lirst king of England to impose on his subjects, 
by statute, the penalty of death, and that, the awful 
death i>\ tiro, on account of fidelity to religious belief. 
And thus was inaugurated the system of horrible intol- 
erance that blackens, for so hum - a period, the page of 
English history, of which Catholics ami Protestants 
were alike guilty, ami whose only palliation is the 
spirit of the age. To the prayer of the House of 

Commons, that the cruel statute might be repealed or 
mitigated, Henry replied that "he wished one more 
severe had been passed," and gave a terrible proof of 
his sincerity by immediately signing the death warrant 
of another reformer. 

Revolt ill Behalf Of Richard II. Henrys reign wit- 
nosed a constant succession of revolts. Throe of 
these will be noticed. The lirst was in behalf of King 
Richard, who was rumored to have escaped from con- 
finement, :11,, t b) be still living in concealment in Scot- 



92 HENRY IV. 

laud. This w;is quickly suppressed, and in K-ss than a 

mouth :i report was nirrent thai Uiehard had died at 

Castle Poutefract. His body was even brought to 
London and exposed io the public gaze, that all might 
see that he was really dead. Strange and conflicting 
stories were told of the manner of his death, l>ut nothing 
is positively known. Ho is supposed to have been con- 
signed by Parliament io an unknown dungeon, and 
'."have diedaviolont death, at tho instigation of Henry 
himself. 

Revolt <>!' the Welsh. Another revolt broke out in 
Wales, under Owen Glendower, who claimed desoent 
from the n>\ al line of Llewollyn and the ancienl Britons. 
As in the times of Edward I.) patriot hards, journeying 

from place to place with song and story of the oarl\ 

heroes of Welsh history, fired the Welsh heart anew 
with its old love of liberty, Glendower, being de- 
feated in I ho open field, retired \o the fastnesses of 
Suowdon, and throughout Henry's reign defied the 
whole powor of England, What beoame of him was 
never known, lie lived for some time after Henry Y. 
oame to the throne, a wanderer and an outlaw, refusing 
all overtures of poaeo, and making his home in hidden 
eaves among his native hills. A cave still called 
" Owen's Cave " is to be seen on the eoast of Merioneth. 
Revolt of tho Percies. But the insurrection most 
dangerous to Henry's throne suddenly broke out undei 

the Peroies, who had hitherto heen its most powerful 

supporters. The cause of their defection is not clear. 
It may have been Henry's Inability to pay the expenses 
of their previous campaigns in his behalf, or his un- 
willingness to ransom the eider Mortimer, Hotspur's 



MI'.NKY IV. 99 

brother-in-law, who was a prisoner to Glendower; but 
its declared object was to place upon the throne the 
Earl of March, whom Henry held as ;i state prisoner ni 
Windsor. They were assisted by Glendower and 

Douglas, each :it the head of a band of his count ry- 

nien. Henry gained a oomplete victory over all these 
foes al Shrewsbury, in I l<>:». Hotspur, the younger Percy, 
being killed on the field ofbattle. The elder Percy per- 
ished in a subsequent revolt. 

Tho Poet-Sing of Scotland. Prinoe James, a youth 
of twelve, and heir to the Scottish throne, had embarked 
for France, to escape tho perils that menaced the royal 
family of Scotland. His ship was taken by an English 
cruiser, and the young prince remained a state prisoner 
in England for nearly nineteen vears, two of whioh 
were spent in the Tower, and sixteen in the Keep of 
Windsor Castle, lie was provided with good instruct- 
ors, and became the famous "Poet-king of Scotland." 
When released, he assumed the crown to which he had 
fallen heir, and math' one of the noblest of Scottish 
kings. He married Ladv doanna Beaufort, an English 
princess, to whom he had become attached while in 
prison. 

Henry's Troubles. Henry lived in constant dread of 

the Lollards, who were known'to be active in foment- 
ing insurrections. He was conscience-smitten, too, 

it is said, at the part he had taken in their perse- 
cution, as well as at (lie means he had used to attain to 

power. Forced to he ever on the alert against the 

friends of the dead Richard on the one hand, and the 

living Mortimer on the other; morbidly jealous of the 

growing popularity of tho Prince of Wales, and in con- 
stant fear lest the latter should snatch the crown from 



94 HENRY iV. 

Lis head; distressed at the Prince's wild and reckless 
conduct; and shattered in mind and body by epileptic 
tits to which he was subject, no wonder he grew 
morose and unpopular towards the end of his reign, 
and was hurried prematurely to his grave. He died in 
afit, while praying before the shrine of St. Edward's at 
Westminster. "Uneasy lies the head that wears a 
crown," was Shakspeare's sage reflection on the 
stormy years of Henry's reign. 

Henry V.,1413 to 1422 — 9 years. Lancaster. 

The Wise Beginning of Henry's Eloign. The reigu of 

Henry Y . was short hut brilliant, happily disappoint- 
ing those who feared that the reckless prince would 
make a reckless king. Calling together his old com- 
panions in tolly, he told them of his purpose to change 
his lite, and forbade them to enter his presence until 
they should follow his example, and reform. In proof 
of his sincerity as well as wisdom, he selected as his 
principal advisers in the government, men of known 
integrity of character. Aiming them was Grascoigne, 
who, as Chief Justice, once sent Prince Henry himself 
to prison, for interfering with the course of justice. 
Several just and noble acts, at the very outset of his 
career, did much to disarm the enemies of his' house. 
He pacified the York family by setting free the long 
imprisoned Ear] of March, and by giving to the bones 
of Richard II. a truly royal burial among the kings of 
England at Westminster. He gained the support oi' 
the powerful family of the lYreies, by restoring to them 
their forfeited estates. 



HENRY V. 95 

Suppression of the First Reformation. Henry's 
attention was early called to the Lollards. Their doc- 
trines had been gradually spreading, during the preced- 
ing reign, not only in England, but on the continent. 
John Huss, rector ot" the University of Prague, had 
become, through the influence of WicklifiVs writings, 
a convert to Lollardism, which he openly preached, 
until silenced at the stake. 

The Catholic clergy, early in this reign, saw the 
necessity ot* acting with more vigor against the "new 
heresy," and marked as their tirst victim, Sir John 
Oldcastle, the leader of the Lollards in England, whose 
eastle they had made a place of refuge. 

The king, inspired by an old friendship, sought to 
save him from death: hut Oldcastle, refusing to recant, 
was cast into the Tower, and. after trial and condem- 
nation by the prelates, was turned over to the civil 
authorities to be burned. The king again interposed, 
granting a respite of fifty days, during which Old- 
castle made his escape, and planned, so it was said, and 
so the king believed, an immediate rising of the Lol- 
lards. Henry at once took decided ground against 
the Reformation, and the most violent persecution 
followed. The severest statutes were enacted, com- 
manding the arrest of all persons, even if suspected 
of heresy, and entailing forfeiture of estate and blood 
un all convicted. Oldcastle and many others perished, 
and the first Reformation, mail that was outward and 
visible, was soon at an end. Elsewhere allusion has 
been math- to the decline of the Reformation among the 
influential classes, on account of its connection with 
the ''Peasants' Revolt." A word more seems proper 



[Jtf HENRY V. 

before leaving the subject. Some of the leaders of 
the Reformation, lacking the singleness of purpose 
that inspired its founder, Wickliffe, sought, as we 
have seen, to bring within its sweep the removal of 
social distinctions and the equalization of property, — 
our modern communism. At the time of its suppres- 
sion, it also rested under the odium of conspiring to 
subvert the government. The Reformation, branded 
on the one hand as communistic, and so, dangerous to 
society; on the other as revolutionary, and so, destruc- 
tive to public order, gradually arrayed against itself not 
only the rich and powerful, but also the more thought- 
ful and conservative. Outwardly, the Reformation 
ceased to exist, hut, to use the expressive words of 
Lingard, a spirit of inquiry had been generated, and the 
seeds were sown of that religious revolution, which, in a 
little more than a century, astonished and convulsed the 
nations of Europe, or to use the poetic language of Knight, 
"Out of Wickliffe's rectory, at Lutterworth, seeds were 
to be borne upon the wind. which would abide in the 
earth till they sprang up into the stately growth of other 
centuries." * 



•Thirty years after Wickliffe's death, ami in the early part of Henry's reign, 
the Council of Constance, the same that condemned Jobn Hups, Issued a 
deoree that Wickliffe's remains Bhould be disinterred ami burned. This was 
done, and his ashes were oast into a little brook that runs past Lutterworth, 
into the Avon. The Avon leads into the Severn, the Severn into a narrow sea, 
tx i the Bea into the ocean. In the following beautiful lines the poetic fancy oJ 
Wordsworth makes the scattering ol Wickliffe's ashes an emblem of thf 
■treading of his doctrine:— 

"As thou these ashes little brook, wilt bear 

Into the Avon— Avon to the tide 

01 Severn— Severn to the narrow seas— 

Into main ocean they — this deed accurst. 

An emblem yields to friends and enemies, 

How the bold teacher's doctrine, sanctified 

By truth, shall spread throughout the world dispersed." 



HENRY V. 97 

Renewal of the "Hundred Years' War." During the 
reigns of Richard II. and Henry IV., there had been 
an intermission in the "Hundred Years' War" with 
France. It was renewed by Henry V., a year after he be- 
came king, by a revival of the old claim to the French 
throne. The time was a favorable one. The French 
King, Charles VI., was insane, and his son, the Dau- 
phin, too young to rule ; while the Dukes of Burgundy 
and Orleans had involved the nation in a bloody war 
to decide which should be regent during the Dau- 
phin's minority. Henry crossed the channel and cap- 
tured Harfleur, near the mouth of the Seine, but with 
a loss, by sickness and death, of two-thirds of his 
army. Against the advice of his nobles, he formed 
the daring purpose of marching through the country to 
Calais, following the old route of Edward IH. He 
bad about ten thousand men. The French factions, 
startled at the new danger, ceased their fratricidal 
strife, and prepared to meet the common foe. 

Aginconrt, A. D. 1415. The French army, esti- 
mated at one hundred thousand men. planted itself 
directly across Henry's path, near the village of Agin- 
conrt. The hostile armies joined battle about noon, 
October 25th. In three hours, the battle won added 
new glory to English arms, and fresh laurels to her 
kings. Considering all the circumstances of the day, 
it was the most brilliant victory English soldiers evei 
gained over those of France. 

Aginconrt at once took its place in history by the 
side of Cressy and Poictiers, but outshone them both ; 
Cressy in the fearful odds against which the English 
contended, and in the brilliant personal achievements 



98 HENRY V. 

of England's kiinr ; Poictiers, in the amazing fortitude 
with which that Little band of sick and starving men 
encountered the flower of the chivalry of France. 
Seven princes of the blood, above a hundred noble- 
men, and eight thousand knights, fell on the side of 
France that day. 

Henry then made his way unopposed to Calais, and 
soon after crossed the channel to England. What a 
joyful welcome the English people gave their warrior- 
king when he returned from his brilliant campaign ! 
They rushed into the water, as he noared the land, and 
bore him on their shoulders to tin 1 shore. Throngs oi 
delighted people went out to meet him from all the 
towns, strewing flowers in his path. His entrance to 
London finds no parallel except in the magnificent Tri- 
umphs the people oi' ancient Home were wont to give 
their returning victors. 

Siege of Rouen. All attempts at a permanent peace 
were futile, and, in 1417, Henry again entered France 
with a well-appointed force of forty thousand men. 
Towns and castles surrendered at his summons, or fell 
before his assaults. The siege oi' Rouen lasted six 
months. Its inhabitants, variously estimated at from 
one hundred and fifty to two hundred thousand, refus- 
ing to open their gates, were at last reduced to the 
most dreadful extremities. "War," said Henry, "has 
three handmaidens. Fire, Blood and Famine, and I 
have chosen the meekest maid of the three." And 
while the merciless king was slowly drawing his lines 
closer around the devoted city, this meek but pitiless 
handmaiden. Famine, was executing her horrible com- 
mission within its walls. One half its inhabitants had 



HENRY V. 99 

perished, and the survivors, in despair, had resolved to 
bum the city and die in battle before its walls, when 
Henry, fearful that Fire and Blood would, at the last, 
snatch from his hands the coveted prize, offered them 
terms of capitulation. 

Conquest of Franco and Treaty of Troyes. An 
event soon happened that hastened and completed the 
conquest of France. The Duke of Burgundy was as- 
sassinated in the very presence of the Dauphin him- 
self, and probably with his connivance. The Duke's 
son. Philip, in revenge, allied himself with Henry, and 
the whole Burgundian party threw itself into the scale 
against the Dauphin. A treaty was made at Troyes, in 
the presence of the king and queen of France, in 1420, 
bestowing on Ilenrv the hand of Princess Catherine, 
and securing to him the regency of France during the 
life of its maniac king, and its sovereignty at his death. 
The States-General solemnly ratified the treaty. While 
engaged in bringing the kingdom to order, in the von 
prime of life and at the height of his power and glory, 
Henry was attacked by an incurable disease, and died, 
August 31st, 1422. He left an infant son at Paris, 
now king ot England and France. 

Henry's widow, Catherine, afterwards married Owen 
Tudor, a Welsh chieftain, one of her attendants, and 
from them sprang the Tudor sovereigns. 

Beginning of the Navy. The first ship of war ever 
owned by the English government was built in Henry's 
reign. Before this period, the maritime towns had fur- 
nished all the ships needed for war or national pur« 

L.orC. 



tOO HENRY V. 

poses.* The House of Commons took but a single 
step in advance during Henry's reign. It Bettled the 
principle that no law should be valid without the assent 
of the House of Qommons, 

Henry VI., 1422 to 1461 — 3D years. Lancaster. 

The Dauphin of Franco Assumes the Crown. Henry 
VI. was crowned King oi' England and Franco at the 
age oi' nine months, his ancles, the Dukes oi' Glouces- 
ter and Bedford, being appointed, in accordance with 
the wish of his father, the one Protector of the Realm 
oi' England, and the other Regent oi' France. The 
Dauphin oi' France had never consented to the "Treaty 
oi' Troyes," setting aside his claims to the throne, and, 
at the death oi' his maniac lather, shortly after that of 
Henry V.. assumed the title oi' Charles Vll. The 
town of Orleans, Lying on the north side oi' the Loire, 
and the country south of the Loire, were loyal to 
Charles, never having eome under the sway of Eng- 
land. Bedford, who, as a soldier, was little inferior 
io Henry V, himself. Laid siege \o Orleans, with the 
design oi' extending the English dominion. The 
French were in consternation; for, with the fall of 
Orleans, the country south of the Loire would be open 
to invasion. 

Joan of Arc. The amazing success oi' the cam- 
paigns oi' Edward 111. and Henry V. had given the 
French an exalted idea oi' English valor and a ureal 

* The dependence of the government on maritime towns, for ships of war, 
oontinned for a long time, even after it began to own vessels of its own; for 
the growth of the Bngli iNavyv - very slow. 5The Heel with which Elisa- 
beth, ninny years later, dostroyed the Invincible Armada, was mainly contrib- 
uted, all manned and equipped, bj maritime towns and wealthy Individuate 



HENKY VI. 101 

distrust of their own. There is no other explanation 
of the ease with which a mere handful oi' English 
soldiers could repeatedly overrun the most populous 
districts of France. It was at this moment, when 
French despondency was deepest, that help appeared 
from a most unexpected quarter. A simple peasant 
girl oi Domremy, on the eastern confines of France, 
believing that she was destined by Heaven to free her 
country from foreign rule, presented herself at the 
Court of Charles. She told the story ot' the angel 
visions she had seen, and the voices she had heard, 
commanding her to so to the succor o( her king. The 
French people had unlimited faith in Joan's divine com 
mission, ami Charles himself, believing, or professing 
to believe, her story, paid herthe greatest honor. The 
belief in sorcery and witchcraft was all but universal in 
that age. To allay the alarm of their superstitious 
soldiers, the English commanders assured them that 
Joan was not a messenger oi' Heaven, but this only 
forced them to the belief that she was sent by the Evil 
One, and was a witch, and their dismay was complete. 
.loan, elad in white armor and mounted on a snow 
white horse, with a great white banner borne before 
her, on which were embroidered the lilies ot' France, 
directed her march towards Orleans. Crowds of 
excited soldiers joined the strange procession that 
passed unopposed through the lines of the awe-stricken 
English, and entered Orleans. Under her lead, the 
French soldiers, restored to confidence in themselves, 
soon drove the besieging army from its intrenchmeuts, 
and Orleans was saved. 



102 HENRT VI. 

Joan, called from this time the "Maid of Or- 
leans," then commenced her triumphant march on 
RheimSj where, according to the prophetic "voices," 
the king was to receive his crown. Town after town 
was taken on the way, sometimes without a Mow, the 
English soldiers Hying in dismay as tin 1 dread banner 
came in sight. At Rheims, the garrison was driven out 
by the inhabitants, and the gates opened wide io receive 
the advancing host. In the old oathedral that had 
witnessed the coronation of so many of his ancestors, 
Charles was formally crowned King of France in 1429. 

Joan, with tears of joy, declared that her work was 
done, her mission ended, and desired io return at 
once to the care oi' her father's flocks. There were 
other eities io be conquered, and the king detained her ; 
but her enthusiasm was gone, her counsels became timid 
and vacillating, and the spell o\' her power over the sol- 
diery w;is soon broken. Captured in the defence of 
Compiegne, she was sold to the English by Burgundy, 
and, after a year's captivity at Rouen, basely handed over 
to the church oourts for trial. Being condemned as a 
witch and a heretic, she was burned to death in the 
ancient market-place at Rouen, in L431. Whatever 
credit we may give to the " visions " ami " voices " Joan 
professed to have seen and heard, we cannot doubt 
her heartfelt sorrow for her erownless king and fallen 
country, her sincere faith in her mission, or her devo- 
tion in fulfilling it, her purity, her piety, and her mar- 
tyr's death. Though her ungrateful king made no 
effort to rescue or ransom her, and took no interest in 
her fate, her name is held in grateful remembrance 
among her countrymen, and excites a tender respect 



HENRY TI. 103 

wherever her strange, sad story is told. These will 
form a monument more enduring than that erected to 
her memory on the spot where she died. 

Loss of all France, except Calais. The English rule 
in France was hastening to its close. The Dukes of 
Burgundy and Orleans had been reconciled, and their 
united forces hurled against the English. Fighting 
bravely, but defeated on every side, they retired to Nor- 
mandy in the hope that that province, at least, might 
lie saved. There was a truce and then a treaty, but both 
were powerless to stop the war. Normandy rose in 
rebellion in the north, and Guienne in the south. 
Though the English fought with desperate valor, they 
were steadily driven towards the sea-board, and finally 
within the walls of Calais, and the " Hundred Years' 
War," that long, fitful dream of an English empire in 
France was over. Such an empire was impossible. 

The campaigns of Edward III. and Henry V. were 
brilliant, but unsubstantial, feeding the national pride, 
but exhausting the national resources. As soon as 
those great captains retired from the scenes of their 
conquests, those conquests melted away like mist before 
the morn og sun. The French crown was but a bright 
and tempting "Will-o'-the-wisp," luring on ambitious 
kings, but ever eluding their grasp. 

Euglish Discontent. The loss of France caused in- 
tense disappointment in England, and as the vengeance 
of the people could not be visited on the royal person, 
it fell on the heads of his advisers. The Duke of Suf- 
folk had brought about the marriage of Henry with 
Margaret of Anjou, consenting, in the contract, to the 
cession of Maine and Anjou to Margaret's father. To 



104 1IKNKY VI. 

satisfy popular clamor, Suffolk was impeached by Par- 
liament,and hurried by the king in((» exile, to save him 
from n worsefateat home. Bu1 Suffolk's enemies were 
not to be cheated out of their prey. He was pursued 
and i>\ ertaken on the high seas by a Large ship, called the 
"Nicholas of the Tower." Being ordered on board 
the Nicholas, he was greeted, as he reached its deok, 
with the salutation, " Welcome traitor." Twodaysafter- 
wards,he was Lei down into a small boat and beheaded 

with a rusty sword, on :i block o[' wood. The Duke <)\' 

Somerset was held responsible for the more recent 
losses iii France. But, being a relativeof the king and 
a favorite of the queen, he continued for a while to 
doty all his enemies. 

Jack ("ado's Rebellion. Shortly after the death oi 
Suffolk, :i revolt broke out under one Jack Cade, an 
old soldier in the French wars. It grew out of the 
genera] discontent at the mismanagement of the gov- 
ernment at home and abroad. Cade's grievances were 
embodied in :i "Complaint " scut to the Royal Council, 
o( which had counselors to die king, interference oi' 
the nobles in the elections, extortion oi' the royal oi'- 
tiecrs, and the Statute oi' Laborers, formed the chief 
burden. It is interesting to note that this revolt was 
chiefly Located in Kent, Wat Tyler's old home, and 
among the very classes implicated in Tyler's old re- 
bellion,* Cade, advanoing towards London with a 

* Tyler's principal grlevanoewas serfage, and bla chief demand freedom. 
The faol thai neither serfage nor freedom was mentioned In Cade's Complaint 
is Btrons, Inoldentni i>v,n>i thai sla\ erj , though still on the Btatnte book, had 
virtual I j died out, especially Id Its more odious features. The sumptuary 
laws of tins period also Bhow the improved condition of the lower cIms--,'*, 
and dio gradual passing awas of social distinctions. Although the Statute of 
Laborers was still unrepealed, II had ,•••:! stv) to be executed . the labor question 



HBNBY VI. 105 

motley trowd oi' twenty thousand men, met and scat- 
tered the royal forces at Sevenoaks. The king fled to 
Kenilworth, and Cade entered London. Three days 
he held the city, putting to death obnoxious persons, 
and, at the last, plundering private property. Retiring 
at night to Southwark, the citizens held London bridge 
and prevented his return. On a promise of pardon 
and redress of grievances, the pacified insurgents began 
to return to their homes, while Cade himself, with a 
price on his head, and almosl without a follower, was 
pursued into t ho country and put to death. 

Events Preceding the Wars of the Hoses. Cade's 
rebellion is supposed by some to have been incited by 
Richard, Duke of York, who returned from his govern- 
ment in Ireland, in a short time, only to increase still 
more the general confusion. Be demanded the dismission 
of the Duke oi' Somerset from office. The violent quarrel 
that now began between the ambitions Dukes soon ripen- 
ed into open war. Henry, although a man in years, 
was but a child in intellect. The real government lay 
in the hands of the Queen, the friend of Somerset. At 
this juncture Henry sank into utter imbecility , and Par- 
liament appointed York, Protector. Somerset went into 
the Tower. The king recovered, and York retired to his 
estate, while Somerset returned to power. The most 
powerful noble in England was the Karl oi' Warwick, 
who took the side of York. In the spring of 1455, 
York and Warwick marched towards London, with 

being left, for the most part, to the natural laws that govern it, tin" laws oi 
supply and demand, in comparing the two revolts, filer's whs an outburst 
of despair on the pari <>i men whose wrongs bad beoome unendurable ; Cadtft 
a mere polltloal outbreak, inaugurated by men dissatUiled with the manage- 

incut ul public alfuus. 



106 HENRY VI. 

professions of loyalty to the king, but with a peremp- 
tory demand for the surrender of Somerset. The 
battle of St. Albans, in 1455, left Somerset dead on 
the field ; that of Northampton, in 1460, witnessed the 
complete overthrow of the royal forces and the capture 
of the kins; himself. 

Hitherto, the Duke of York had professed loyalty to 
the king and enmity only to his bad advisers, but 
he now revealed the hidden purpose that had inspired 
all his movements from the beginning. Boldly enter- 
ing the House of Lords, he pronounced Henry VI. a 
usurper, and claimed the crown as his own by right 
of inheritance.* The Lords, compelled to act, ac- 
knowledged the justice of his claim, but decided that, 
since the House of Lancaster had held the sceptre for 
sixty years and the nation had sworn fealty to its pres- 
ent king, with him the sceptre should remain while he 
lived, and then descend to the House of York. 

Wars of the Roses. Henry's spirited Queen, in- 
dignant at an arrangement that disinherited her son, 
summoned all the friends of the House of Lancas- 
ter to the field. The conflicting claims of the two 
Houses had been discussed at every hearth-stone and 
camp-fire in England, and the sympathies of civilians 
as well as soldiers were warmly enlisted on the one 
side or the other. The adherents of the House of Lan- 
caster wore as a badge the red rose, and those of the 
House of York, a white rose ; hence the name " Wars of 
the Roses." Though there was actual warfare less than 
two, these wars covered a period of thirty, years, sacri- 

• 8ee note on page 90. 



HENRY VI. 107 

Being nearly all the members of both royal families, 
and mole than half the ancient nobility of England. In 
the first conflict, at Wakefield, in 1460, the Red Rose 
triumphed over the White, the Duke of York being 
captured and brought to the block, on the field of 
battle. His head was placed on the walls of York, 
adorned, in mockery, with a paper crown. In the 
second, at Mortimer's Cross, the White triumphed over 
the Red, Edward, the young Duke of York, being in 
command. In the third, at St. Albans, the Red was 
again victorious, and King Henry, who had been 
brought, a prisoner, upon the field by Warwick, 
being left behind in the rush of retreat, was restored 
to liberty. 

•The true qualities of most minds are best seen in 
emergencies. Some men are never so little to be fear- 
ed as when victorious ; others never so dangerous as 
after a defeat. While the Lancastrian generals, in- 
stead of following up their advantage at St. Albans, 
allowed their men to scatter over the country to pillage, 
Edward, spurred to promptitude and boldness by fail- 
ure, pushed straight on to London. As the young and 
handsome prince rode through the streets of the 
capital, he was greeted by the people with shouts of 
w Long live King Edward." A council of peers, 
prelates, and citizens, was hastily convened, before 
whom Edward boldly demanded the crown. The 
council declared that Henry had forfeited his life-lease 
by taking sides with the Queen, and that Edward was 
the rightful King. The formal coronation took place 
at Westminster, June 29th, 1461. 



CHAPTER VII. 



Souse of fork, 1461 to L485 -1 years. 

BDWAED iv. I BIOHABD III. 

KDUAKDV. I 

Edward IV., 1461 U) 1485 :i yaws. York. 

Toulon, A.I>. 1461. Edward put himself al tL< 
bead of all the forces he oould muster, and set out in 
pursuit of t lu* Lancastrians, now hurrying northward. 
Be overtook thorn :it Tow ton, about eight miles from 
York. Each army numbered sixty thousand men. It 
was iu tho midst of a snow storm, about four o'clock 
iii the afternoon of Palm Sunday, thai the struggle 
bogan. All nighl long and pari of the following day 
the dreadful battle raged, and when t ho Lancastrian 
army, panic-struck, fled from ilu> field, thirty-three 
thousand nun i.i\ dead in the snow. It had been the 
practice, from the very beginning of the war, for either 
party, when victorious, to exeoute the nobles of the 
othor, and confiscate their estates. Aitor To wton there 
was a swooping confiscation of Lancastrian estates, 
many of which wenl to reward the Earl of Warwick, 
the main pillar of t lu» House of York. So rich and 
powerful did this nobleman become, it is said he oould 
muster an army of men from tho vassals on his own 
estates, and he has oonie down to us In history as tlu< 



ii<*> 



r.i»\\ \i;d i\ . 10:> 

king-maker, from his ability, as wo shall presently sec, 
in make and unmake kings. 

Two attempts made by the Lancastrians :il Hedge- 
ley Moor and Hexham, in 1 1 1 » 1 , i<> retrieve their fallen 
fortunes, were unfortunate. Henry, after hiding iu 
Lancashire for more than :i year, was betrayed in his 
enemies and thrown into the Tower. Queen Margaret, 
friendless and destitute, fted with her little son. Prince 
Edward, to i he court *>f her lather. 

Barnet. The friendship between Edward and War- 
wick soon gave place to socrol enmity, and that to 
open warfare. Edward was jealous of the overshadow- 
ing power of Warwick, and Warwick was offeuded al 
Edward's secret marriage with Elizabeth Grey, widow 
of a Lancastrian knight, and the elevation of the 
Queen's family, (he Woodvilles, t«» rank and power. 

Fortune was tickle. In the spring of 1470, Warwick 
became an exile in France, where he math 1 an alliance 
with Queen Margaret, engaging to aid her in restoring 
the House of Lancaster to power. This alliance was 
cemented by tin" marriage of Margaret's son to War- 
wick's daughter. In the fall of the same year, Edward, 
in turn, became a fugitive in I [olland,and I [enry exchang- 
ed a dungeon for the throne, [n the spring of 1471, Ed- 
ward having received aid from his brother-in-law, the 
Duke of Burgundy, landed :it Ravenspur and prepared, 

once more, to meet his powerful foe. On the field of* Bar- 
net, on Easter Day, in the mist and darkness, was foughl 
the last battle between the king and the king-maker. 
The latter, betrayed by his ally, the Duke of Clarence, 
the king's brother, was slain, and his army cut to pieces, 
Edward re-ascended the throne, and 1 [enry re-entered the 



110 ki>\\ \i;i> IV. 

Tower, where he died soon after by the hand of violence. 

Tewkesbury. The very day the battle of Barnet was 
fought, Margaret landed with a force at Weymouth. 
Undismayed by the disastrous tidings that soon reached 
her, the spirited queen pushed northward and made a 
final stand at Tewkesbury. There, on the fourth ot* May, 
she saw her last army annihilated, her only sou. for 
whom aloue she had really' fought, cruelly slain while 
crying for mercy, and the last hope of the House of 
Lancaster fade away. Ransomed after five years of 
captivity by t ho king of France, she returned to her 
native A.njou and died broken-heartod at the disasters 
that had befallen her family. 

Character and Government of Edward. Edward 
had a superior mind and was a good soldier. So long 
as his crown was in jeopardy, he continued vigilant and 
active; hut when the last enemies of his house had been 
silenced, in the dungeon, in exile, or in death, he gave 
himself unreservedly to the gayeties and excesses of 
his court. Handsome and affable, he made himself a 
favorite in society : hut sagacious and unscrupulous in 
matters ot stale, he became a tyrant and established a 
despotism. 

lie attempted to revive the old thread-hare claim to 
sovereignty in France. Parliament voted large Minis 
tor a French war, and raised and transported to French 
soil an immense army. Advancing from Calais a short 
distance, negotiations were opened with King Louis, 
resulting in a treaty, Edward yielding his claims for an 
annual pension. 

The odious spy system was a device of Edward's, and 
was made so thorough. that the lightest court gossip as 



EDWARD 1\ • Ill 

well .is the gravest state intrigue found its way to the 
king's oar. Another invention of Edward's was called a 
"benevolence." This was a gift of money which he 
would invito his rich subjects to make him, and which 
fchoy dared not refuse, — an ingenious way of keeping 
the letter, but violating the spirit, of the law against 
arbitrary taxation. 

Results of the Wars of the Uoses. We are now 
at the close of Edward's reign, and although the last 
battle of the Wars of the Roses has not yet been fought, 
the main part of the struggle is over, and it seems 
proper here to allude briefly to its general results. 
These may be summed up as follows : — 1st. The de- 
struction of the ancient nobility of England and the 
fall ot' the Feudal System. '2nd. The loss of constitu- 
tional liberty. 3rd. The decline of civilization. 

The Destruction of the Ancient Nobility. The 
Wars of the Roses were peculiarly the wars of the 
nobles. All the great feudal houses, gathered around 
the rival standards of York and Lancaster, were hurled 
against each other, in battle after battle, with frightful 
loss. Confiscations, executions, and exile, still further 
diminished their numbers and power, until, at the close 
of the contest, the ancient baronage ot' England was 
left a hopeless wreck. It is said that at one time and 
another, during these Avars, the Crown held one-fifth of 
all the real estate in England as its share of the spoils. 
It is true, both lands and titles remained, some ot' them 
to return to their former owners or their kindred, but 
more wont to enrish and ennoble the favorites of the 
king. 



112 EDWAED IT. 

The nobility, thus re-created by royal olemency and 
royal bounty, was shorn of its traditional power and 
independence. It bore little resemblance to the grand 
feudal race that, coming down from the Conqueror, 
was as old as the throne and ;is proud; to the lordJya 
race that, for centuries, had stood so firmly between 
the throne and the people, the support of the one 
against factiou, and the defence of the other against 
tyranny. 

We cannot help a feeling of admiration for the old- 
tune baron of England, whether we recall him in time 
of peaoe, in the old ancestral castle, extending a rude 
but hearty hospitality, or in time of war, (dosing his 
gates and bidding defiance to all his foes, lie feasted 
or he fought with equal relish, and was no respecter of 
persons, buckling on his armor as readily lor a tilt with 
the forces of the king as with those of his quarrelsome 
neighbor. Said Karl Warrenne, as he thing his sword 
on the table before the commissioners of Edward 1., 
sent to examine his title deed, "That, sirs, is my title 
leed." When Karl Bigod refused the demand of 
Henry 111. for aid, said the latter, " I will send reapers 
and reap your fields for you." " And 1 will send you 
back the heads of your reapers," replied the fearless 
Karl. 

We can hut honor their patriotism as well as admire 
their fearlessness. Time and again did they come to 
the front in periods of national peril. The barons of 
Emrland wrung from the tyrant John the great char- 
tei of freedom. Who that has read the story of 
Magna Charta has not Longed to know which of the 
immortal twenty-four was the Jefferson who conceived 



EDWARD IV. 113 

and framed that wonderful instrument? But history is 

not silent as to the name of Simon de Montfort, the 

leader of that other immortal twenty-four that reap d 
the House of Commons in the very face of the throne 
itself. 

With the ancient baronage fell the Feudal System. 
Feudalism, as a power in England, expired, as it were, 
in a bright but lurid flame, when the House of War- 
wick, after towering for a brief period, high above 
the throne itself, suddenly went down on the field of 
Barnet. The regret of the reader will be but natural 
that Warwick, who has been fitly called the "Last of 
the Barons," could not have been the best as well as 
the last of his race. 

The Loss of Constitutional Liberty. From the 
Magna Charta to the "Wars of the Roses, there was a 
slow but real progress in constitutional liberty, almost 
every reign bringing either a limitation of the royal 
prerogative or an enlargement of popular rights. 

At the beginning of the Wars of the Roses, there 
had been established, so far as the intelligence of the 
people and the arbitrary dispositions of kings allowed, 
the following principles : — The king had lost the right 
to levy taxes, make or change the laws, and imprison 
or punish subjects arbitrarily. Parliament had gained, 
besides the control of laws and taxes, the right to 
impeach and remove the ministers of the crown, direct 
and investigate expenditures, depose the king, and 
settle questions of peace and war. During the Wars 
of the Koses, all these great principles and guarantees, 
won through centuries of toil and suffering, were 
rudely swept away, and it was a century more, before 



114 EDWARD IV. 

the nation had sufficiently recovered itself to re-assert 
and re-establish them. England may be Bald to have 

passed from an absolute to a limited monarchy, when, in 
the reign of Edward 1., the king lost the right to Levy 
taxi's without the consent ^i' Parliament. Edward IV. 
reduced England to an absolute monarchy again, that 
continued to grow more and more absolute, until, in the 
reign of Henry Y11I., it had become a despotism as 
unmitigated as that of the Czar. 

Nor is this strange. The nobility, shattered and 
dependent, had neither power nor prestige, and could 
no longer, if it would, stand between the people and 
oppression; the ehnreh that had so often stood side 
by side with the nobility in the contest with tyranny, 
was stricken with heresy, and paralyzed through fear of 
another reformation; the people were not yet sntli- 
tiently enlightened to understand or maintain their 
own lights; and so the crown was left with little or 
no restraint, and the descent towards absolutism was 
easy and rapid. Charters, statutes, and human rights 
Were trodden under foot with perfect impunity. To 
use the language of Green, "The Crown which only 
fifty years before had been the sport of every taction, 
towered into solitary greatness." 

Though constitutional liberty seemed, after the Wars 
)l the Roses, to have departed from England, none 
of the great statutes advancing the cause of human 
lights were ever abrogated. 

The Magna Chart a was recognized as the supreme 
lav of the land by kings and ministers, even while 
they trampled its provisions under their feet. The 



EDWARD IV. 115 

Monarchy and the House of Lords were once abol- 
ished, but the House of Commons never. Though 
bated by tyrants, and bo prorogued, dissolved, over- 
awed, and ignored, it never for a moment ceased to 

exist . 

The Decline Of Civilization. The barbarous manner 
in which these Avars were conducted was most debasing, 
not only to the soldiers who were actors, but also 
to the people who were spectators, in the horrible 
drama. w No quarter," was the savage order in many 
a battle. But more demoralizing than this were tho 
cold-blooded executions that followed almost every 
victory. And most brutalizing of all was the hideous 
md sickening spectacle of ghastly heads and limbs of 
human bodies, impaled on stakes and walls in public 
places, and constantly staring the people in the face. 
What a school tor the young were the Wars of tho 
Roses! The nobler qualities of individual character 
were consumed in the fierceness oi' the hate which these 
wars engendered. There is hardly a chivalrous deed to 
be found in the whole gloomy record. War is not neces- 
sarily demoralizing to cither individual or national 
character. When waged in the cause of truth and jus- 
tice, it may bo ennobling to both. A Washington or 
a Hampden may become great and i^ood in tho midst 
of conflict and carnage. But in the Wars of the Roses 
there was no principle at stake. The welfare of a 
nation was sacrificed to the interests of a house; the 
patriot was sunk in the partisan; the baser passions 
ruled, and civilization declined. 



116 EDWARD V. 

Edward V., April 9th to June 2Gth, 1483. York. 

Usurpation of Richard, Duke of Gloucester. The 

people of England bad settled down tolerably contented 
under Edward IV., in spite of tbc tyrannical character 
of bis government. In fact, they were willing to ac- 
cept almost any rule that could save tbem from the 
horrors of civil war, and give some promise of sta- 
bility. At Edward's death, there was a general dispo- 
sition to receive kindly his son Edward, as his suc- 
cessor. But there was one man in England who did 
not share this feeling, Richard, Duke of Gloucester, 
uncle to the young prince. With the subtle craft of 
which he was master, Richard concealed his ambition 
under a mask of loyalty, but at once put into opera- 
tion a scheme of usurpation, that, for boldness of de- 
sign and skill in execution, has few equals. 

He first arrested on a trivial charge, Lords Grey 
and Rivers, Prince Edward's uncles on his mother's 
side, and threw them into castle Pontefract. He then 
possessed himself of the person of Edward, and after- 
wards, of Edward's younger brother, Richard, and 
lodged them for safe keeping, as he said, in the Tower. 
He next secured from Parliament his own appointment 
as Protector of England, and at the same time, with 
other peers, took the oath of fealty to Edward. 

A few days after this, on the 13th of June, occurred 
a scene in the Tower, where the royal council were in 
session, marked in itself, but made forever classic by 
the genius of Shakspeare. Richard suddenly presented 
himself before this council, at the head of a file of sol- 
diers, and charged its president, Lord Hastings, with 



EDWARD V. 117 

sorcery and designs upon his life. "I will not dine," 
said he, at length, "till they have brought me your 
head." Hastings was quickly hurried into the court- 
yard by the waiting soldiers, and beheaded on a chance 
block of wood. The other members of the council 
we to cast into prison. Having thus put out of the way 
all the immediate friends of the young princes, Richard's 
elevation to the throne became easy. He surrounded 
himself with soldiers, and was attended in public by a 
formidable array of prelates and nobles, many of whom 
were won to his side by the honors and offices ho heaped 
upon them. The Thames is said to have been covered 
with the barges of his servants, while in London organ- 
ized gatherings of the rabble were taught to shout, 
" Long live King Richard," and a shameless friar, in a 
sermon at Paul's Cross, pronounced the princes illegiti- 
mate, and declared the Duke of Gloucester to be the 
true heir to the kingdom. Finally, a deputation headed 
by the Duke of Buckingham, Richard's pliant minion 
from the beginning, invited him to take the crown, 
which, with a show of reluctance, he consented to do. 
The next day, at an informal meeting of members of 
Parliament, the declarations of the friar received a 
shameless endorsement, and Richard, the following 
day, the 26th of June, occupied the royal seat at 
Westminster Hall, as King Richard III. The same 
day, Grey and Rivers were beheaded without a show 
of trial. The formal coronation took place on the 6th 
of July, and the well-planned tragedy, of which Glou- 
cester and Buckingham were the authors and chief 
actors, the whole kingdom of England a stage, and all 
its people silent but interested spectators, was over. 



118 RICHARD III. 

Richard 111.. US.'* (o 11S5 — 2 years. York. 

The Elements of Opposition to Richard. Although 
no open resistance was made io the usurpation of 
Richard, he bad numerous enemies, including nearly 
all the adherents of the House of Lancaster and those 
of the House of York, who were, at heart, loyal to the 
rightful king, Edward V, There was, too, a general 
feeling of indignation at the harsh treatment of the 
young princes; for, at the accession of Richard, they 
had boon removed from the palace of the Tower to its 
prison. There were whispers of a gathering storm. 
The Duke of Buckingham, now estranged from his old 
master, was getting ready for a rising to liberate the 
princes and restore Edward io his rights. Henry 
Tudor, Ear) of Richmond, the last surviving member 
oi the house of Lancaster, Mho had been saved at the 
fall of the Lancastrian cause, by flight to the continent, 
was busy enlisting English exiles and fugitives to return 
and assist in the rising. 

The Smothered Princes. Richard had gone to the 
north on a "royal progress," and was at Warwick when 
vague rumors of Richmond's plans first reached his 
ears. A messenger of Richard's rode swiftly back tu 
London on a secret mission, and soon it was r 
abroad that the young princes were no more, lb 
when they had died no one know; but that a foul 
murder had boon committed, and that Richard 
its instigator, all believed. The very mystery in 
which the fate of the princes was shrouded, as 
impenetrable .-is the gloomy walls that were its silent 
witness - rved but to deepen the public horror of 
the crime, and the public abhorrence of the criminal. 



RICHARD III. 119 

After Richard's death, the hired assassins told how they 
smothered the little princes, sweetly sleeping in each 
other's anus, and buried them at the foot of the stair- 
case that led to their apartment in the White Tower. 
In confirmation of this story, it is said that some work- 
men, sent by diaries II., in L674, to make repairs, 
found buried in the ground at the foot of an old stair- 
case, the hones of t wo youths. 

Bosworth Field. The rising that took place was un- 
fortunate. Richmond, who had arrived with a fleet to 
aid the movement, was driven oil* the coast by a storm, 
and compelled to return to France. Buckingham, un- 
able to cross the high waters of the Severn and join 
the confederates, was taken and executed. Richard 
now summoned his first and only Parliament, and at- 
tempted by wise legislation* to turn the current of 
public opinion, setting so strongly against him. It 
was too late. The death of the princes defeated the 
plans of the conspirators, but a new scheme was made 
to elevate Richmond himself to the throne, and to bring 
about his marriage with Elizabeth, eldest daughter of 
Edward IV., thus uniting the rival houses, and rallying 
to the support of Richmond the adherents of both. 
Richard tried to forestall a scheme so dangerous to his 
power, by one attempt to marry Elizabeth to his own 

* Anions others thoro were statutes mating unlawful the exaction of "be- 
Devolenoi b," — establishing a protective tariff, but allowing the free importa- 
tion of books, — forbidding the Beizure of the goods of persons suspected ol 
crime before conviction, ami allowing such persona to be liberated on bail,— 
giving freedom to all Hie serfs still left on the royal estates, — legalizing the 
mie of estates regardless of the email, a statute that enoouraged the breaking 
np of large estates, and the wider distribution of landed property among the 
middle and lower classes, usually accredited to the reign »f Henry VII. 



120 RICHARD m. 

son, but the latter suddenly dying, by another, to es- 
pouse her himself, from which he was deterred by the 
force of public opinion. 

In the meantime, Richmond was busy reorganizing 
his expedition, and word soon came that he had sailed 
from the mouth of the Seine. Richard took his stand at 
Nottingham, a central point, and, with horsemen on ah 
the roads, awaited the beacon-lights on the distant hill- 
tops that were to signalize the time and place of Rich- 
mond's landing. August 7th 1485, the expedition 
entered Milford Haven, and a landing was effected. 
On the 22d, the opposing armies met on the Field of 
Bosworth. In the midst of the conflict, Lord Stanley 
went over to Richmond with all his forces. Earl Percy 
refused to fight, when Richard, with a cry of " trea- 
son, treason 1 " rushed into the thickest of the fight, 
with the desperate resolve to conquer or to die At- 
tempting to strike down his rival, Richmond, into 
whose very presence he had cut his way, he was sur- 
rounded and slain. His golden crown, that had rolled 
under a hawthorn-bush when he fell, was found and 
placed npou the head of Richmond, on the battle-field, 
and in the presence of the whole army. There was 
great rejoicing throughout England, when it was 
known that the hated king had paid with his life the 
penalty of his crimes. The Wars of the Roses and the 
reign of the House of York ended together on Bos- 
worth Field. 

Character of Richard. It is difficult to make a just 
estimate of the character of Richard III., good authori- 
ties differ so widely in their views of him. Until recent- 
ly, ho has been regarded as a monster of wickedness, and 



RICHARD in. 121 

without a redeeming quality. But hi& apologists af- 
firm, that the historians and dramatists, from whom we 
have derived our impressions, living in the Tudor 
period, and devoted to the interests of the Tudor sov- 
ereigns, painted Richard's character in colors alto- 
gether too dark. There is no doubt, that mere suspi- 
cions * of crime on the part of Richard have grown 
into a positive belief in his guilt, that his bad qualities 
and wicked deeds have been paraded in all their de- 
formity, and his good qualities and worthy deeds passed 
1 ightly over. He showered benefits on those who served 
him, and performed many acts of kindness and justice. 
He restored to the family of Hastings the forfeited 
estates, secured her jointure to the widow of Rivers, 
and provided for the widow and daughters of Edward 
IV., who had taken sanctuary at Westminster, when 
Edward V. went to the Tower. He inspired more wise 
legislation in the single session of Ins Parliament, than 
can be found in the records of any previous reign since 
Edward I. — legislation that had the ring of liberty in 
it. As a ruler merely, he compares favorably with the 
kings of that period. But as to his character as a man, it 
seems difficult to reverse the verdict of history. The 
historians of the Tudor period, though partial, recorded 

* The belief that Richard murdered Henry VI. with his own hand, and drown- 
ed the Duke of Clarence, his older brother, in a butt of Malmsey wine, seemed 
to rest in the fact that he waa known to be in the Tower when they were re- 
ported to have died ; and the belief that he was the one who stabbed the son 
Of Henry VI. after the battle of Tewkesbury, rested on the fact that he was 
known to be present, but Hastings and Clarence were also present. The be- 
lief that he put out of the way Anna, his wife, to make room for Elizaboth, 
rested on the fact Hint she died very conveniently for his plans, although 
rather suspicious remarks are accredited to Elizabeth, in substance that 
" the better part of February had passed and she feared the Queen would 
never die." The Queen died about the middle of March. 



122 RICHARD III. 

and reflected the opinions of Richard's own contempo- 
raries, the public sentiment of Richard's own times; 
and public sentiment, though not infallible, is, in the 
long run, a truthful mirror of the characters of men. 

Richard began his public career about the year 1471, 
and continued for fourteen years to be actively engaged 
hi public affairs, twelve in the service of his brother, 
Edward IV., and two as an actual sovereign. Almost 
his first recorded public act was one of heartless cruelty. 
A young man of less than twenty years, he was one of 
two judges that condemned to death so many Lancas- 
trian nobles after the battle of Tewkesbury, when they 
had been induced to leave the sanctuary, to which they 
had lied, by a promise of pardon. 

With the death of the princes the feeling against 
Richard became intense and universal. It was evident 
that personal ambition was his sole inspiring motive. 
Splendid talents and the most untiring energy were re- 
morselessly devoted to one fixed purpose, to become 
King of England. As best suited his policy, he could 
assume the most daring effrontery and boldly strike 
down those who stood in his way ; or, resorting to the 
arts of dissimulation, remove them by the hand of the 
secret assassin. Henry VIII. destroyed a hundred 
lives to Richard's one ; but he did not inspire half the 
terror, for Henry's judicial murders were perpetrated 
under the color of law and in the light of day. Sim- 
ply to secure his throne, Henry YU. put out of the 
way, with a form of trial, an unoffending royal prince, 
without exciting universal abhorrence. 

There is nothing from which human nature so in- 
stinctively shrinks as a deed of darkness, no being it 



RICTIAKD III. 123 

so abhors as aii assassin or his employer ; and it was 
the settled belief in Richard's almost Satanic capacity 
for deeds of darkness, that inspired all England with 
such a dread of him, and that has given to his character 
oi the page of history a color of such unexampled 
blackness. 



CHAPTER VIII. 



Tudor Family, 1485 to 1603 — 118 years. 



HENRY VII. 
HENRY VIII. 
EDWARD VI. 



MARY. 
ELIZABETH. 



Henry VII., 1485 to 1509—24 years. Tndor. 

Union of York and Lancaster. That Henry was a 
descendant of John of Gaunt,* and an acknowledged 
usurper, would, under ordinary circumstances, have en- 
dangered his throne ; but his opportune marriage with 
Elizabeth, a York princess, entirely appeased the jeal- 
ousy of the House of York, while the satisfaction of 
the people at the overthrow of Richard fully reconciled 
them to the usurpation. This union of the Roses was 
a source of great strength, not only to Henry but to all 
the Tudor sovereigns. 

Lambert Simnel. The only attempts worthy of note 
to disturb ( lie new house were made by two impostors, 
Lambert Simnel, son of a joiner of Oxford, and Pcr- 
kin Warbeck, son of a merchant of Tournay. Simnel 
claimed to be Edward, Earl of Warwick, escaped from 
prison, although at that very moment the real Warwick 
lay in a dungeon in the Tower, to which he had been 

•It will l»o remembered that by the Treaty of Troyes, Henry V. received in 
marriage the band of Catherine, daughter of Charles VI., the crazy king of France, 
mnl that after Henry's death, his widow married Owen Tudor, a Welsh chief- 
liin, by whom she had a eon. This eon married a descendant of John of 
tiaunt, Duke of Lancaster. The issue of this marriage was Henry Tudor, 
Earl of Richmond, now Henry VII. Hence the name Tudor. 

(1»4) 



HENRY VII. 125 

transferred by Ileury. Landing in England with a 
force chiefly of Irish, he was beaten and taken captive 
in the battle of Stoke. As an expression of the king's 
contempt for the imposition he had practiced, Simnel 
was made a scullion in the royal kitchen, but was uf» 
terwards promoted to the office of falconer to the king. 
Perkin Warbeck. Warbeck, a more dangerous but 
not less real impostor, personated Richard, the younger 
of the smothered princes, claiming that he too had 
escaped from the Tower, and had now come forward to 
assert his rights. He visited a number of foreign 
Courts, and had a variety of interesting adventures, 
being crowned as a real prince at Dublin, furnished 
with a royal body-guard at Paris, patronized as the 
"True "White Hose" by the Duchess of Burgundy, and 
supplied with men and money, and wedded to a royal 
wile,* by James of Scotland. After two fruitless in- 
vasions, the one from Scotland under the lead of the 
Scottish king, and the other from the west, supported by 
the Cornishmen, Warbeck was deserted by all his fol- 
lowers and traced to the Sanctuary f of Beaulieu, iu 

* TliiB was Lady Catherine Gordon, a member of the royal liouso of Stuart. 
She was lauied for personal beauty and amiable trails of Character. When 
Warbeck entered upon his dangerous career, he placed his wife for safe-keep- 
ing in the Castle of St. Michael's Mount. After his defeat, a body of horse- 
men suriounded the castle, and compelled its surrender. Even the cold, 
practical king was touched by Catherine's devotion to her husband, and gave 
her an honorable place near the person of the queen. The name, White Itose, 
by which she came to be known, though suggested by the false claims at 
her husband, was given as a tribute to her beauty. 

t Sanctuaries were consecrated places, where criminals could, for a limited 
time, find shelter when pursued. They were analogous to the temples of 
refuge among the ancient Greeks, and the cities of refuge among the Jews. 
In England, as early as the seventh century, churches, and in some cases 
their grounds, were set apart for sanctuary purposes. Sometimes a stone 
scat was placed beside the altar, where the person of the fugitive was as 
sacred as the altai itself. Though the sanctuary might bo surrounded, and th« 



126 HENRY VII. 

the New Forest. Induecdto surrender, he was thrown 
into the Tower, and afterwards hanged at Tyburn, on 
the charge of planning an insurrection with the young 
Earl of Warwick, his fellow-prisoner. Warwick was also 
executed, not because he was guilty of any offence worthy 
of death, but because he was the last male Plantagenet, 
and a source of possible danger to the throne of Henry. 

The Statute of Allegiance. The attempts made on 
the throne, though not very grave, led Parliament to 
define by statute the allegiance of the subject. It was 
enacted that no one should be punished for allegiance 
to the reigning king, whether he be king "do jure" 
(by right), or king "de facto" (in fact). This was 
designed to guard against such wholesale executions, 
in case of a change in the dynasty, as followed the fluc- 
tuations of the Hoses, when men were adjudged trai- 
tors one day for adhering to York, and beheaded the 
next for following Lancaster. 

The Discovery of America. The reign of Henry 
VII. marks the era of discover}'. When Columbus re- 
turned to Spain, under whose auspices he had sailed in 
1492, and the startling news ilew from port to port that 
a new world had been discovered far to the westward, 
it was like a bugle blast in the midst of a slumbering 
army. The maritime nations of Europe awoke to a 

orlmlnal forced by hunger to surrender himself, he had the right of" abjuration 

af ll,o i calm ; " that is, ho OOllld go before the proper authority any lime within 
fortj days, .onfoss his erimo.and make oath to quit the realm and not return 
w ltrout the consent of (he king. In that ease he was protected until he could 
embark tor Borne foreign country. Traitors wore deprived of the right of 
sanctuary in 1">34, criminals in the reign of Elisabeth, and insolvent debtors 
in 1607. Bat In Sootland, the Palace and A.bbey of Holyrood still remain a 
Banotury for poor debtors. Persons not oriminals, whose lives were in dan- 
iter, Often took shelter in the sanctuaries. 



HENRY VTI. 127 

spirit of enterprise and inquiry they had never known 
before. National pride and jealousy, and individ- 
ual love of glory and adventure, sent expedition alter 
expedition out into the broad and hitherto dreaded 
Atlantic, on its wonder-seeking mission. The printing 
press,* invented just before, aided in the general awak- 
ing. The story of the voyage of Amerigo Vespucci, 
published in Strasburg in 1505, was circulated through- 
out Europe, stimulating still more the thirst for dis- 
covery. When the first flush of wonder and excite- 
ment had passed away, and the public curiosity in 
regard to tbe new-found lands bad been partially sat- 
isfied, d reams of empire, schemes of profitable trade, 
and a wild greed for gold, became permanent incentives 
to individual and national enterprise. In original dis- 
covery, England was second only to Spain, sending 
out an expedition under John and Sebastian Cabot, 
that reached, in 1497, the main land of North America. 
The same year an expedition, fitted out by the Portu- 
guese, under Vasco di Gama, doubled the Cape of 
Good Hope, and opened a new way by water to the 
commerce of India. 

The Revival of Letters. The Art of Printing had 
quickened the spirit of inquiry in other directions. 
There was in England a great revival of letters. On 
the taking of Constantinople by the Turks, in 1453, 

♦William Caxton learned the Art of Printing while in Holland, where, in 
U71 be i Mini ci i a book entitled " The Reouyell of the Bistoryes of Troye." He 
brought his press to England In 1476, reign of Edward IV., and the next year 
published a work entitled " The Game and l'laye of Chess." Loiifr before the 
Christian Bra the Chinese were familiar with block printing, and its use in 
Germany dates from the year 1488. Gutenberg Invented cut metal types in 
1444 ; Schceffer, types cast iu hollow moulds in 1462. 



128 HENRY VII. 

many of the learned men of Greece found an asylum 
in Italy. Thither flocked students from all quarters, 
among whom, from England, were Grocyn, Linaere, 
Colet and Erasmus. On their return to England, fired 
with zeal, a new enthusiasm was awakened inthe study 
of Grecian and Roman literature; and the Bible, that, 
in rare and costly manuscript, had been aeeessiblo to 
only a privileged few, reproduced in cheap editions, in 
print, was brought within the reach of many. Men 
began to think for themselves, not only in philosophy 
and science but in politics and religion. The discovery 
of a new world, awaking the spirit of investigation and 
enterprise, gave an immense impetus to the intellectual 
development just beginning under Colet. In the lan- 
guage oi' Green, "The human mind seemed to gather 
new energies at the sight of the vast held which opened 
before it." And here, too, we find the source and 
beginning of modern civilization, based not on the 
essential slavery of the Feudal System, as was the 
mediaeval, but on the growing intelligence and increasing 
importance vi the masses of the people. 

The Character and Policy of Henry. With little 
love for learning himself, Henry had looked with an 
eye of cold suspicion on the signs of a new intellectual 
life brightening all around him. Even the discovery 
of America hardly disturbed the impassive king. He 
had been willing, indeed, that the Cabots should sail 
on a voyage of discovery, at their own expense, and 
he showed some appreciation of their grand achieve- 
ment, by rewarding them with a present of ten pounds 
when they returned and laid a new world at his feet. 



hen u y vii. 129 

Henry wau business-like and miserly. He kept two 
lawyers busy finding "cases" and exacting fines. Ob- 
solete statutes, forgotten tenures, and petty violations 
of law, were so many drag-nets that swept into the 
courts multitudes of men, whose lines poured into the 
royal treasury a constant stream of wealth. He revived 
" benevolences,'* but improved upon the plan of Ed- 
ward IV., who sought gifts only from the rich, by ex- 
acting them from the poor as well.* lie omitted no 
opportunity to grasp the estates of those attainted, and 
made a large income from the rigid execution of the 
Statute of Liveries. 

In feudal times the castles of the barons were like 
armed camps. Crowds of idle retainers, feeding on the 
bounty of their lordly masters, were ever ready, at their 
bidding, to storm a castle or menace a throne. The 
Statute of Liveries, enacted in a preceding reign, was 
designed to break np these great military establish- 
ments. Having fallen into disuse, it was revived and 
executed by Henry, with fine and forfeiture. f A new 
court, called the " Star Chamber," was appointed to 

* By a cunning device, called from its author, " Morton's fork," he demanded 
money of those who made a display in their style of living, for display was 
evidence of wealth, and exacted gifts from those who made no display, on 
the ground that such must have grown rich by their economy. 

f Bacon tells an amusing story highly illustrative of Henry's avaricious 
character:— " There remaineth to this day a report that the king was, on a 
time, entertained by the Earl of Oxford, —that was his principal servant, 
both for peace and war, — nobly and sumptuously, at his castle at Henningham. 
a'id at the king's going aw;iy, the earl's servants stood, in a seemly manner, 
'n their livery coats, with cognisances, ranged on both sides, and made the 
Xing a lane. The king called the earl to him, and said : ' My lord, I have heard 
much of your hospitality, butl see it is greater than the speech. These hand* 
some gentlemen and yeomen, which I see on both sides of me, are sure your 
menial servants.' The earl smiled, and said, ' It may please your grace, that 
were not for mine ease. They are most of them my retainers, that are couie 



130 IIHNKY VII. 

have special reference to cases coming under this stat- 
lite, — a oourt that, being solely under the control of tho 
king, became, in later reigns, the instrument of great 
oppression. By sharp practice and rigid economy, 
Henry was able to amass an immense fortune (£10,- 
000,000 present value) for his son and successor to 
squander. 

Though avaricious hy nature, there was a policy ill 
Henry's desire to be rich, lie had one grand pur- 
pose ever in view, — the establishment of the Tudor 
throne on a safe and solid basis. He well knew that 
the great power of the Commons lay in their control 
of (he public funds, and that the possession of abun- 
dant means on the part of the king was the royal road 
to independence. lie exerled himself, therefore, to 
obtain money without appealing to Parliament, and 
was so successful that, there was but one session of 
Parliament during the last thirl ecu years of his reign. 

lie tried slill further to fortify his house, by connect- 
ing it, through marriage alliances, with the reigning 
families of Europe. His son Arthur was married to 
Catherine of Arragon, a Spanish princess, and his 
daughter Margaret to James Stuart, the King of Scot- 
land. Henry died in 1509, and was buried at West- 
minster, in the magnificent chapel which he himself 
had built and which still bears his name, lie was suc- 
ceeded by his son Henry. 

to do mo service at BUOD a time as this, and chiefly to sco your grace.' The 
kins started a little and said: ' By my faith, my lord, i thank you for your 
good oheer, but i may nol endure to have my laws broken in my sight. My at. 
jorney must speak with you.' And It is part of the report, that the earl com 
pounded lor uo loss than lliieen thousand marks." 



HENRY VIII. 131 

Henry VIII., 1500 to 1547 — 38 years. Tudor. 

Character of Henry VIII. Henry VIII. came to 
the throne under circumstances peculiarly favorable. 
Representing in his own person the rival houses of 
York ;iinl Lancaster, Ik; received their cordial and 
united support. Henry was eighteen years of age, a 
handsome, generous, and popular prince. But he 
changed much in disposition as he grew older. Nat- 
urally passionate and impulsive, and unused to self- 
control, he became, with opposition, malignant and un- 
relenting. He was as prodigal as his lather had been 
penurious, and wasted in a few years the great fortune 
he inherited. One of the first official acts of the young 
king was designed to satisfy popular clamor. Empson 
and Dudley, the hated lawyers of Henry VII., were 
brought to the scaffold on a charge of treason. 

Foreign Alfairs. The foreign wars of this reign 
were comparatively unimportant. Henry has been 
called a good soldier, but a bad general. Both the 
king and his principal minister, Thomas Wolsey, were 
actuated more by personal than national considerations, 
in the foreign relations of the state. At one time 
licnry was ambitious to occupy the vacant German 
throne ; at another, Wolsey aspired to fill the vacant 
papal chair ; and each sought to shape the foreign 
policy of England to meet his own interests. In spite 
of the failures of his predecessors, Henry dared to 
dream of the conquest of France. His campaign in 
that country, in 1513, is chietly celebrated for the 
battle of Guinegate, which the French themselves 
laughingly named the "Battle of the Spurs," from the 
amusing haste with which their cavalry, not whipt 



132 HENKY VIII. 

but well-scared, galloped off the battle-field. During 
Henry's absence in France, an event occurred in Eng- 
land of a far more serious character. 

The Scots were in league with the French. Invad- 
ing England under the command of their king, James 
IV., they were met at Flodden, the last of the Cheviot 
Hills, by an army under the Earl of Surrey. The 
bloody battle that followed left Scotland without a king, 
and almost without a nobility. Ten thousand gallant 
Scotch knights fell on Flodden Field. Being deserted 
by his allies, Henry made peace with the French king, 
Louis XII., giving the latter in marriage the hand of 
his eldest sister Mary.* In 1520 there was a meeting 
between Henry and the new king of France, Francis I., 
in English territory. The place of the meeting has 
been called the " Field of the Cloth of Gold," from the 
magnificeuce of the display. The most important of 
Henry's foreign relations was with the Pope of Koine. 

The Divorce of Catherine of Arragon. Henry had 
married Catherine of Arragon, his brothor Arthur's 
widow, soon after coming to the throne. He had been 
betrothed to her by his father years before, a special 
dispensation being obtained from the pope, as such a 
union was forbidden by the Levitical law and a canon 
of the church. Nearly twenty years after this marriage 

*Louis XII. soon died, and Uenry sent Charles Francis Brandon, Duke of 
Suffolk, to France.to bring his widowed sister back to England. Now it hap- 
pened that Brandon was an old and accepted lover of Mary's, and her wishes 
had not been consulted by Henry when he gave her to the French king; 
princesses' wishes rarely were in those old times. Taking advantage of so 
favorable an opportunity, Brandon and Mary were married in France before 
they returned to England. Henry was, at lirst, very angry, but soon forgave 
them. They had a daughter, Lady Fiances Brandon, who married Henry 
Grey, Marquis of Dorset. Lady Jane Grey, whose sad history we are soon to 
relate, was the offspring of this marriage. 



HENRY VIII. 133 

had taken place, Henry began to have what he ealled 
conscientious scruples about its legality. He coupled 
these scruples with his " despair of having male issue 
by Catherine, to inherit the realm." He had but one 
living child, a daughter, Mary. Another dispensation 
was now required to dissolve his union with Catherine, 
before he could form a new alliance. Cardinal Wolsey 
was commissioned to secure it. Charles V., Emperor 
of Germany, nephew to Catherine, had captured Rome 
and made the pope a virtual prisoner in the Castle of 
St. Angelo. For the latter to give the desired dispensa- 
tion would offend Charles ; to refuse it would displease 
Henry. Delay, then, on the part of the pope, in making 
a decision that might involve both the peace of Europe 
and the welfare of the church, was but an act of ordinary 
prudence. For two years was the impatient king kept 
in suspense, his impatience made all the greater by the 
violence of his passion for Anne "feoleyn, a pretty maid 
of honor to the queen. At length, in 1529, a legatine 
commission composed of Cardinals Wolsey and Campeggio, 
was appointed to try the case in England. 

After sitting about two months, and just as Henry 
was expecting a favorable judgment, the commission 
unexpectedly adjourned, and the sanguine hopes of the 
king were suddenly dashed to the ground. The pope 
then ordered the case to be- tried at Rome, sealing the 
fate of Wolsey, and making a rupture with the Holy See 
inevitable. 

Cardinal Wolsey. Cardinal Wolsey was the son of a 
butcher, and was educated at Oxford. Brilliant talents 
had brought him to the notice of Henry VII.," from 



134 HENRY VT11. 

whom bo hud received the appointment of royal chap- 
lain. He afterwards attracted the attention of Henry 
VIII. , who raised him from one position to another 
until he became Lord Chancellor of the kingdom, and 
Cardinal in the church, and finally Papal Legate. 

For twenty years he had stood at the head of church 
and state, the most powerful, if not the most able, 
subject England ever had. His genius was unequalled 
for breadth or versatility. He could play the courtier, 
and amuse the idle hours of the pleasure-loving king 
with ceaseless sallies of wit and mirth, or he could 
act the statesman, and guide with consummate skill the 
most intricate affairs of the government. It is inter- 
esting to follow him as he leaves the scenes of his 
former pomp and splendor, and devotes himself with 
simplicity and meekness to the ordinary duties of a 
parish priest, visiting the sick and dying, giving alms 
to the poor and needy, and ministering in countless 
ways to the temporal and spiritual wants of his grateful 
people. In about a year, the king ordered his arrest 
on a charge of high treason. He had committed no 
new offence, and had been pardoned for the old one ; but 
he had an unforgiving enemy in Anne Boleyn. 

In charge of the keeper of the Tower, Wolsey com- 
menced his last journey towards London. He was 
taken ill on the road. On reaching Leicester Abbey, 
conscious that his end was drawing near, he said to 
the Father Abbot, as the latter gave him a kindly wel- 
come, "I am come hither to leave my bones among 
you."- This was Saturday night. The following Tues- 
day, November 29th, 1531, when at the point of death, 
be gave utterance to those ever memorable words, 'Tf 



HENRY Vlll. 135 

I had served God as diligently as I have done the king, 
he would not have given me over in my gray hairs."* 
The ingratitude of Henry VIII. was the basest of his 
many faults. He eould crush long-tried and faithful 
servants, with as little feeling as he would tread upon 
the meanest reptile. 

The Divorce of Catherine of Arragon Accomplished. 
The gordian knot of the divorce was finally cut by the 
ingenuity of Bishop Cranmer, who suggested to the 
delighted king the reference of the whole question to 
the universities of Europe. The pope forbade the 
divorce of Catherine and the marriage with Anne 
Boleyn, on pain of excommunication. But a majority 
of the universities, for various reasons, decided in 
Henry's favor, and Cranmer, now made Archbishop 
of Canterbury, pronounced, in 1533, Henry's union with 
Catherine null and void. Anne Boleyn, already mar- 
ried to the king, was publicly crowned Queen of Eng- 
land. The noble Queen Catherine, whp had resisted to 
the utmost the disgrace and injustice heaped upon her, 
died in a few years, honored for her virtues and her 
piety. 

The Oxford Reformers. We return once more to 
the beginning of Henry's reign. The young king, 
though fond of pleasure and display, was scholarly in 
his tastes and well educated, and carefully fostered the 
new spirit of enterprise and mental activity among his 

* These words, addressed to Muster Kingston, the Constable of the Tower, 
who had been sent by the king to convey Wolsey to prison, have been crystal 
lized by the genius of Shakspeare : 

" O Cromwell, Cromwell, 
Uail I but served my God with half the zeal 
I served my king, Ue would not in mine age 
Have left me naked to mine enemies." 



136 HENRY VIII. 

people. Colct, who had been made Dean of St. Paul's 
by Henry VII., became, under the present king, head 
of a new school for the study of Latin and Greek 
literature ; More was appointed to some civil office, 
and, later, at the fall of Wolsey, to the chancellorship ; 
Erasmus received a professorship at Cambridge. These 
zealous pioneers in the new world of thought and con- 
science, vigorously applied themselves to the work of 
reform. 

Erasmus. Erasmus, with a moral courage that re- 
minds us of AYickliffe, wrote book after book, in which 
he aimed at reformation in politics and religion as 
well as learning, now arraigning and ridiculing the 
follies and foibles of the monks and men of various 
professions, and now addressing the consciences of men 
in the most tender and affecting appeals. In his 
" Praise of Folly," he makes Folly, dressed in cap and 
bells, describe, in a speech to her associates, the re- 
ligious teachers of the day, the old school men, as 
"men who knew all about things of which St. Paul 
was ignorant, could talk science as though they had 
been consulted when the world was made, could give 
you the dimensions of heaven as though they had been 
there and measured it with plumb and line, men who 
professed universal knowledge, and yet had not time 
to read the Gospels or the Epistles of St. Paul." But the 
work of Erasmus must potent in its influence, was his 
edition of the New Testament, in parallel columns, one 
in Greek and the other in Latin. Several editions were 
required to meet the popular demand. Said Erasmus, 
in speaking of the Scriptures in his preface, "I wish 
that they were translated into all languages, so as to be 



HENRY VIII. 137 

read and understood not only by Scots and Irishmen, 
but even by Saracens and Turks. I long for the day 
when the husbandman shall sing portions of them to 
himself as he follows the plough, when the weaver 
snail hum them to the tune of his shuttle, when the 
traveller shall while away with their stories the weari- 
ness of his journey." 

Thomas More. From the prophetic pen of More, 
appeared a work entitled "Utopia," or Nowhere, a 
satire on the times, especially the reign of Henry VII. 
Utopia was an ideal commonwealth, which an imag- 
inary companion of Amerigo Vespucci, deserted on 
the American continent, found somewhere iu the midst 
of the wilds. It had wide and cleanly streets, com- 
fortable houses, a system of public schools in which 
every child received a good education, perfect religious 
toleration, and universal suffrage, though with a family, 
and not an individual ballot, and the sole object of the 
government was the good of the whole people, and not 
the pleasure of the king. Had More's pseudo voyager 
but wandered to the American continent a few centuries 
later, he would have found his model "Utopia" a real 
and not an ideal republic. 

Opposition to the Oxford Reformers. This is but 
a slight glance at the work of the Oxford Reformers, 
extending through a period of /:>rty years, in educating 
the people of England up to a higher plane of intelli- 
gence, and in preparing the way for that second and 
still greater movement that began in Germany under 
Luther one year after More wrote his " Utopia," and 
in England soon after. It must not be supposed that 
the old school men and theologians were silent, while 



169 HENRY VIII. 

the reformers were busy removing the very founda- 
tions of their ancient temples. They bitterly op- 
posed the reformation at every step. More once wrote 
to Colet, " No wonder your school raises a storm, for it 
h like the wooden horse filled with armed Greeks for 
the destruction of Troy." And such it proved. So 
popular diu it become that others of a similar character 
followed ; and it is said that, in the latter part of 
Henry's reign, more schools were founded than in three 
centuries before. Repeated attempts were made to de- 
stroy Colet ; once, when, from the royal pulpit and in 
the very presence of the king, Colet had denounced 
the French wars, in which the king had enlisted so 
heartily ; and again, when, at a convocation of bishops 
and clergy, being appointed to deliver the opening ser- 
mon, he boldly charged many of them with living 
worldly and immoral lives. The bishops of London, 
with others, lodged a charge of heresy against him. 
Said the bluff king to those who sought his help against 
Colet, " Let every man have his own doctor, but this 
man is the doctor for me." To Henry's protection did 
the Oxford Keformers owe their personal safety, and 
to his encouragement was the New Learning indebted 
for its rapid progress. And yet the very men he 
shielded from the most vindictive enemies he hesitated 
not to destroy at their slightest opposition to his own 
will. 

Martin Luther and the Reformation. More than a 
century had passed away since Wickliffe inaugurated 
the First Reformation. We arc now brought to the 
th eshold of the second, under Luther, on whom 
W ieklifie's mantle seemed to have fallen. Martin 



HENRY vnr. 139 

Luther was educated for the law, but, in 1505, he 
entered a monastery at Erfert, and, in 150S, became 
preacher at the University of Wittenburg, lately founded 
by the Elector of Saxony. Pope Julius II. was ambitions 
to erect a temple of unrivaled splendor at Rome. lie 
published an indulgence in Poland and France, which 
Leo X. extended to the northern provinces of Germany. 
In 1517, Luther, learning that one of the agents of the 
pope was about to come to Wittenburg, nailed to the 
doors of his church his famous propositions, ninety-live 
in number, denouncing the abuse of indulgences, and the 
next day (day of All-Saints) read them to the assembled 
parish. The pope's agent was forbidden by the Elect- 
or, Luther's friend and protector, to enter his dominions. 
The controversy that followed, called the "Controversy 
of the Monks," soon attracted the attention of Leo, to 
whom Luther addressed a most submissive letter. But 
upon the publication by Leo, that the pope, as successor 
to St. Peter, and vicar of Christ upon earth, possessed 
the power of granting, for reasonable causes, certain 
indulgences, Luther appealed to a general Council. 
When all efforts to reclaim Luther had failed, the pope 
issued against him a bull of excommunication. This 
Luther publicly burned, and, in 1521, was summoned 
for trial before the Diet of Worms, over which the 
German Emperor himself presided. Luther boldly 
maintained all his declarations before that august as- 
sembly, refusing to recant or abjure, and was con- 
demned as a heretic. Having a safe pass for three weeks, 
he retired to a secret castle in the Thuringian forest, and 
then, after a few months, to Wittenburg, and hence- 
forth devoted himself to the work which he had under- 



140 HENBY VIII. 

taken, the reformation of the church. The emperor 
then issued his edict against Luther, consigning him 
to death at the stake ; but before the sentence could be 
executed, all Germany was ablaze with the fires of 
reformation and revolt, and the emperor had little time 
to kindle that for the martyrdom of Luther. 

Thus began the Great Reformation, but it did not end 
in Germany. We are soon to see it cross the English 
Channel, and separate England and Scotland from the 
Papal See. Nor does it cease, till, in the progress of 
time, it has brought within its resistless sweep the 
kingdoms of Denmark, Sweden, Switzerland, Norway 
and the Netherlands. 

The Reformation in England. England was fully 
awake to the events occurring in Germany. King 
Henry, although a friend to reform in the church, still 
held to its principal tenets. While the Diet of Worms 
was in session, he had written a book against Luther, 
for which, in gratitude, the pope had called him "De- 
fender of the Faith," a title still borne by the sover- 
eigns of England. We have seen how, a little later, in 
1529, a breach had occurred between the king and the 
pope, on account of the divorce of Catherine. This 
gradually widened into complete alienation and then 
separation. By successive acts of Parliament, be- 
ginning in 1531 and ending in 1534, Rome and 
England, bound together for eight hundred years by 
that most sacred of ties, a common faith, were 
sundered forever. The most important of these 
enactments forbade all appeals to the pope, extin- 
guished papal jurisdiction over England, and de- 
clared the King of England to be the Supreme Head 



HENKY VIII. 141 

of the Church of England. It was now that the bull of 
excommunication, long held over the head of Henry, 
was hurled against him. But the Rubicon had been 
crossed, and there was no alternative but a march on 
Rome. 

Bishop Fisher and Thomas More Executed. Speech 
against the pope was no longer heresy ; but denial of 
Henry's Supremacy was made high treason. For the 
latter offence perished on the scaffold, in 1535, Fisher, 
the good Bishop of Rochester, who came to the scene 
of his death w r ith a copy of the New Testament in his 
hand, and read, as he knelt to lay his head upon the 
block, the words, "This is life eternal to know Thee, 
the only true God." For this, too, perished More, one 
of the most learned men in Christendom, who, believ- 
ing the pope to be the divinely appointed head of the 
church, had resigned his office on Henry's assumption 
of Supremacy. He had been a life-long reformer ; but 
he had labored for a reform of the church, and not 
separation from it. The Emperor Charles is said to 
have exclaimed, when told of the death of More, "I 
would rather have lost the best city in my dominions 
than so worthy a counselor." 

Henry Supreme in Church and State. By Act 
of Parliament, Henry now stood at the head of both 
Church and State. He dictated the utterances of the 
pulpit as well as the enactments of parliament ; he 
controlled the ecclesiastical as well as the civil 
courts ; he declared what was truth and what heresy. 
Bishops and archbishops held their places only at his 
pleasure ; and he claimed for himself all the reve* 
nana that for centuries had flowed so steadily to the 



142 HENRY VKI. 

Vatican. No priest could preach without a royal 
license, and no license was given without the Oath of 
Supremacy. Every priest was compelled to declare to 
his assembled parish their absolution from allegiance to 
the pope, and the duty of obedience to the new Head 
of the Church. Thus were the mute and bewildered 
people, constrained by respect for law on the one hand, 
and reverence for religion on the other, carried peace- 
fully through the first and most critical step of a great 
religious revolution. In other nations the Reformation 
advanced only through a sea of blood. It is a perti- 
nent inquiry, to what extent were the peace and order 
that marked the Reformation in England due to the 
overshadowing character of the throne, and the iron 
will of the despot that occupied it? As if to remove 
the last shadow of a limitation to the authority of the 
king, Parliament enacted that royal proclamations 
should have the force of statutes; and it is affirmed, 
that during tho sessions of Parliament, if Henry's 
name were but mentioned, in his absence, the mem- 
bers would rise and bow before the vacant throne. 
Henry's next step was to reform the faith and practice 
of the church. He drew up with his own hand the 
articles of religion.* These showed that the king had 

* They made the Bible the sole ground of faith; reduced the sacraments from 
seven to three, namely : Penance, Baptism and the Lord's Supper; retained 
transubstantiation and confession, but added justification by faith; and re- 
jected pilgrimages, purgatory, indulgences, the worship of images and relics, 
and masses for the dead. The Ten Commandments and the Lord's Prayer 
were required to be taught in every school and family. A copy of Tyndal's 
Bible, the first ever translated into English, revised by Coverdale in 1535, was 
ordered to be chained to the pillar or desk of every church in England, and to 
be open to the reading of all. In 1539. a translation of the Bible was made by 
Cranmer. 



HENR? VTTI. 143 

taken the middle ground between Protestants * and 
Catholics. They were essentially the views Erasmus 
had so long labored to impress upon the English peo- 
ple. The bishops and clergy gradually fell into the 
new order of things, but the monks remained unrecon- 
ciled. 

The Suppression of the Religious Houses. A com- 
mission was appointed to visit the religious houses. 
They reported a larger part of them as corrupt and im- 
moral, and so, by statute, nunneries and monasteries 
were broken up, their inmates being turned out into 
the world, and their revenues poured into the royal 
treasury. Ten thousand nuns alone were made home- 
less by the cruel statute, which was probably inspired 
by no higher motive than the greed of the king for the 
wealth of the church. At the same time the tombs 
and shrines of the saints, many of them adorned with 
costly works of art and rich with the gifts of countless 
pilgrims, were robbed of their treasures and ruthlessly 
destroyed. The most famous of these was the tomb of 
Thomas a Bccket, from which two great chests of gold 
and jewels were borne away to the royal coffers. This 
was followed by several risings, especially among the 

•After the decision of the Diet of Worms, in 1521, Charles V., Emperor of 
Germany, issued an edict against Luther and the Lutheran heresy. A quar- 
rel arose, in 152(5, between Charles and the pope, and the former threw his in- 
lluence against the latter in the Diet of Spires, then in session, and the follow- 
ing decree, entirely annulling the Edict of Worms, was issued: " Each state 
■hould, as regards the Edict of Worms, so live, rule, and bear itself as it 
thought it could answer it to God and the Emperor." The different German 
•tates thus became either Lutheran or Catholic, as they chose. But Charles 
ioon settled his quarrel with the pope, and, as a result, the second Diet of 
tpires, held in 1529, re-enacted the Edict of Worms, and forbade further re- 
form without the sanction of a regular council. Against this decision the 
Lutheran princes of Germany entered their " protest," and were therefore 
called " Protestants." 



144 HENRY VIII. 

nobles in the north and west. These were readily put 
down, and the executions that followed remind us of 
the Wars of the Roses. Henry's principal minister, 
after the retirement of More, was Thomas Cromwell. 
He had taken service with Wolsey, and remained his 
friend to the last. When Wolsey retired in disgrace to 
his Sec of York, Cromwell went to London to " make 
or mar," as he expressed it. It was Cromwell who 
suggested to the king to solve the Papal problem, by 
declaring his own Supremacy. He became a member 
of Parliament, and was indefatigable in his efforts to 
protect and save Wolsey. Ho then became Henry's 
chief minister, and, when Supremacy had been achieved, 
Vice-gercnt of the church. 

Tho Bloody Statute. The Reformation had advanced 
with rapid strides, and was attended with many excesses 
on the part of extremists. A reaction was the result ; 
and this led to the enactment, in 1539, at the dictation 
of the king, of a statute containing six articles, 
called by Fox " the whip with six strings," re-affirming 
the cardinal doctrines of the Catholic church. Tho 
penalty of death, by fire or the scaffold, hung over the 
heads of all who violated the terrible statute. The 
prisons were quickly crowded with offenders. Catho- 
lics were burned for not accepting the Protestant head 
of tho church, and Protestants committed to the 
flames for rejecting the Catholic faith. The execution 
r>f this statute was relaxed after a few months, else it 
were difficult to sec how there could have been a con- 
sistent Protectant or Catholic left in England. 

Henry's Wives. Henry, in 150i>, married Catherine 
of Arragon who was divorced in 1533, having had a 



HENRY VIII. 145 

daughter, Mary. The same year he married Anne 
Bolcyn, who was beheaded, in 1536, on a -charge of 
being faithless to him, leaving a daughter, Elizabeth. 
The next day he married Jane Seymour, who died, in 
1537, after giving birth to a son, Edward. In 1540, 
Cromwell arranged a match with Anne of Cloves, a 
German princess. But she was plain and awkward, 
and in a little over six months, Henry was divorced 
from her, and married to Catherine Howard. She, too, 
was beheaded, in about a year and a half, on a charge 
of unchastity before marriage, and the next year, 1543, 
he married Catherine Parr, who survived him. Crom- 
well was brought to the block when the king discarded 
Anne of Cleves. 

Henry's Death. By an Act of Parliament, Henry 
was authorized to bestow the crown according to his 
own pleasure. He bequeathed it to his son Edward. 
The youth and old age of few persons present so great a 
contrast as those of Henry. A graceful and attractive 
youth, he became in old age so gross and offensive in 
his person that few could endure to remain near him. 
On account of his excessive corpulency, he was moved 
from chamber to chamber by mechanical aid. When 
nis last sickness came upon him, and death drew near, 
at first no one dared tell him the terrible truth. Con- 
scious at last of the coming change, he sent for Cran- 
mer, who had retained his favor to the last, pressed his 
hand, and died. 



146 EDWARD VI. 

Edward VI., 1547 to 1553 — 6 years. Tudor. 

The Regency. The political history of the reign of 
Edward VI., which lasted only six years, is but an un 
interesting record of the schemes of ambitious nun, 
aiming at wealth and power. Henry VIII. had ap 
pointed a Council of sixteen members, at the head of 
which stood Cranmer, to govern the kingdom until Ed 
ward, who was now ten, reached the age of eighteen 
years. This Council, disregarding the will of Henry, 
appointed the Earl of Hertford, afterwards Duke of 
Somerset, one of its own members, Protector. 

Edward and Mary, Queen of Scots. By a treaty 
with Scotland, made during the lifetime of Henry, 
Edward had been betrothed to Mary, the young Scot- 
tish queen. Somerset urged upon the Scots the exe- 
cution of the treaty, but the combined French and 
Catholic influence prevailed to defeat it. Somerset 
raised an army and marched into Scotland to compel 
the observance of the treaty. At the battle of Pinkie, 
the last national contest between the two countries, the 
Scots were defeated with a loss of ten thousand men, 
but they became more bitterly opposed to the execu- 
tion of the treaty than before. The Earl of Huntley 
expressed the prevailing sentiment among the Scotch 
nobles when he said, " He disliked not the match, but 
hated the manner of the wooing." Mary was then sent 
to France to render the marriage impossible. The Earl 
of Warwick, afterwards Duke of Northumberland, 
also a member of the Council, secured the overthrow 
of Somerset and his own appointment in his .stead. 
Northumberland remained in office to the end of th<* 
reign. 



EDWARD VI. 147 

Peasant Revolts. While Somerset was Protector, 
peasant revolts* broke out in different parts of the 
kingdom. The most important of these revolts oc- 
curred under one Robert Ket, at the head of twenty 
thousand men. Ket established himself at Norwich, 
as judge and law-giver for all the country around, 
making his headquarters under an oak tree, which he 
called the " Tree of Reformation." The revolts were 
quelled with the usual barbarities, the "Tree of Reform- 
ation " serving as a gallows. 

Progress of the Reformation. But the most promi- 
nent subject in this reign is the progress of the Refor- 
mation. Archbishop Cranmer, encouraged by the king, 
who was a zealous Protestant, vigorously carried for 
ward the work begun by Henry VIII. The old 

* It is not clear as to the exact causes in all cases. It will be remembered 
that after the ravages of the Black Death in the reign of Edward III., tho 
scarcity of laborers caused high wages, and both together wrought a gradual 
change in the agricultural policy of the country. The farmers, abandoning 
crops that required much manual labor, turned their arable land into 
pastures for raising sheep. The suppression of the monasteries was followed 
by a like disposition of the church lands, the most of which went to satisfy 
the greed of favorite courtiers, and to found a new nobility, and were, by their 
new owners, turned into " enclosures" for sheep culture. The agricultural 
products were thus largely reduced in quantity, but enhanced in value. But 
the people, in the course of time, recovered from the depletions of the pesti- 
lence, and labor became abundant, and consequently cheap. Besides this, 
the monks had been good, to the poor, and were generally beloved. There 
was a feeling of heartfelt sympathy for them, as homeless and penniless they 
wandered about the country, begging food and shelter. The monasteries 
were not corrupt as a rule. They had in times past served a useful purpose. 
They had afforded the means of education to the young, given shelter to the 
traveller, and been a refuge for the oppressed, in an age when there were no 
inns, few schools, and little protection for the weak and innocent against the 
lawless and brutal. The general dissatisfactiou, especially in the rural dis- 
tricts, at their suppression, caused a reaction against the Uefoimation, and 
gave rise to plots for the return of Catholicism. All theso things, therefore, 
" enclosures " for sheep culture, a surplus of labor and a falling scale of 
wages, small crops and the high price of food, the dissolution of the religious 
houses, together with a debasement of tho coinage urier Ilenry VIII., com- 
bined to produce idleness, destitution, and revolt. 



148 EDWARD VI. 

statutes running back to the days of the Lollards, and 
those of a more recent origin on the subject of heresy, 
as well as the "new-fangled treasons" of Henry VIII., 
were all repealed. The Catholic clergy were removed 
from their livings, and their places filled with Protest- 
ants ; the Latin mass was abolished ; the churches were 
despoiled of their plate, the paintings on their walls, 
and the stained glass in the windows, were ruth- 
lessly destroyed. The colleges connected with the 
religious houses and the chantries (places where mass 
was said for the dead) were broken up, their revenues 
being used, in part, by Edward, for the endowment of 
grammar schools and hospitals. Perhaps the most im- 
portant step taken in promoting the Reformation was 
the preparation, chiefly by Archbishop Cranmer, of a 
" Book of Common Prayer." Cranmer took as a basis 
for his work the services that had been in use in the 
church since the primitive ages, making such changes in 
the form of worship as the new faith seemed to require. 
Being acceptable to the king, it was adopted by both 
houses of Parliament, and its use by all the clergy made 
obligatory, under pain of fine and imprisonment. Only 
two persons suffered at the stake during this reign, but 
many, who refused to conform to the Protestant worship, 
went to prison. 

Edward's Will. Lady Jane Grey,* a member of 
the youngest branch of the Tudor family, had married 
Lord Dudley, son of Northumberland. As Edward 
was in consumption, and it was evident that he could 
not long survive, Northumberland prevailed upon him to 
alter the succession, and instead of leaving the crown 

* 8co note on page 189. 



EDWARD VI. 149 

to Mary, the rightful heir, to give it to Lady June 
Grey. Edward was no doubt chiefly concerned for 
the safety of the Protestant religion, and his last 
prayer is said to have been that England might be pre- 
served from " Papistry." Lady Jane was a Protestant, 
Mary, a Catholic; and so zealous was the latter, that 
she continued to hold Catholic services at her own 
house in defiance of all the authorities. Northumber- 
land was undoubtedly inspired by no higher motive 
than the aggrandizement of his own family. The fail- 
ing king was placed by him under the care of a woman 
of reputed skill, but he declined more rapidly than 
before, and soou died, at the age of sixteen. Suspi- 
cions were not wanting that his end had been hastened 
to make more sure and speedy the accomplishment of 
Northumberland's plans. Edward was a youth of 
great promise, and his death was generally lamented. 
Northumberland at once hurried into the presence of 
Lady Jane Grey, with the intelligenee that she was now 
Queen of England. This is said to have been her first 
knowledge that she was Edward's heir, and she as- 
sumed the crown only in obedience to the commands 
and entreaties of her husband's family. 

Mary, 1553 to 1558 — 5 years. Tudor. 

Lady Jane Grey. It had been the intention of the 
conspirators to seize the Princesses Mary and Elizabeth 
before the death of Edward became known ; but Mary, 
being notified of its occurrence in season, took refuge 
in a castle on the coast, that she might escape to for- 
eign parts, in case the fortunes of war went against her. 
She then pi spared to assert her rights by force of arms. 



I 50 MART. 

The usurpation of Northumberland did not meet the 
approval of the people, who gathered rapidly to the 
support of Mary as their lawful sovereign. Lady 
Jane, convinced of her mistake, gladly laid aside the 
crown which she had so reluctantly assumed, and which 
she had worn but ten days, and disappeared entirely 
from the public sight. Her life had been passed in the 
delightful pursuits of learning. Though but sixteen 
years of age, she could speak fluently, Latin, Greek, 
French, and Italian, and had some acquaintance with 
Hebrew, Chaldee, and Arabic. Beautiful in person, 
sweet and guileless in disposition, and gifted in conver- 
sation, she was better litted to shine in domestic and 
literary than in courtly circles. Mary speedily as- 
cended the vacant throne. One of her first acts was to 
bring to the block the guilty Northumberland, and to 
cast into prison the innocent but unfortunate Lady 
Jane and her husband, Lord Dudley. 

The next year a marriage was arranged between 
Mary and Philip of Spain, a zealous Catholic. This 
mat eli being odious to the English people, several ris- 
ings occurred, implicating some of the friends of Lady 
Jane. The fate of the latter was sealed. From her 
window in the Tower,she saw the headless body of her 
husband borne away, and in a few hours followed him 
to the scaffold. John removed one who might be dan- 
gerous to his throne, when he put to death the little 
Arthur; Richard might have made the same poor plea 
when he destroyed the youthful princes in the Tower; 
Mary had little excuse for putting to death this lovely 
girl, whose only crime was lending a too ready obedi- 
ence to her husband's intriguing father. 



MART. 151 

Catholicism Restored to England. Mary was a zeal- 
ous Catholic, and determined to restore England to 
friendly relations with the Papacy. Parliament was 
assembled, and proceeded, by statute after statute, to 
sweep away all the legislation of the preceding reigns 
establishing the Protestant religion. It refused, how. 
ever, to re-establish the religions houses, and restore to 
them their lands ; but Mary conscientiously yielded up 
all church property that remained in possession of the 
Crown. The Catholic bishops, who had been incar- 
cerated in the Tower by Edward, were restored to their 
sees. Cardinal Pole, the legate of the pope, was re- 
ceived with great pomp, and, in presence of the sov- 
ereign and both Houses of Parliament, solemnly 
absolved the nation for its temporary departure from 
the Catholic faith. There soon began an unrelenting 
persecution, but with whom it originated is a matter of 
uncertainty. Bishops Bonner and Gardiner presided 
over the court before which Protestant offenders were 
brought for trial. The statutes originally passed for the 
repression of the Lollards were levived. During the four 
years of its continuance many persons perished by the 
axe, in prison, and at the stake, while thousands tied to 
foreign parts. Bishops Rogers, Hooper, liidley, and Lati- 
mer, and Archbishop Cranmer, the foremost preachers 
of the preceding reign, were successively committed 
to the flames. Said the aged Latimer to his friend 
Ridley, as side by side they were chained to the iron 
stake, "Be of good comfort, Master Ridley,' and play 
the man ; we shall this day light such a candle, by God's 
grace, in England, as I trust shall never be put out." 
Latiraei's prophetic words found a speedy fulfilment. 



152 MART. 

The fires of persecution enkindled anew the zeal and 
devotion of the Reformers. For every life that went 
out in martyrdom to the oause of religious liberty, 
there were- a hundred converts to the Protestant faith. 
Mary's Marriage with Philip of Spain. Mary's 
marriage with Philip took place in L554, hut it proved 
as imhappj for herself as it. was unpopular with hor 
subjeots. On the part of Philip it had been a mattei 
of mere State polioy ; on the pari of Mary one oi positive 
infatuation. Even before she had seen Philip, the rep- 
resentations which the Spanish Legate had made of his 
master inflamed her imagination, and excited her to 
an almost insane desire for the match. She was eleven 
years older than her husband, to whom she became 

devotedly attached, hut by whom she was despised and 
studiously neglected. So unmanly was Philip, he even 
allowed her name to be made a subject of jest among 
the gallants o( his court. Having received, by the 
abdication oi' his father, the sovereignly oi' Spain and 

the Netherlands, he spent most of his time on the 
continent, partly from his aversion to his wife, and 
partly from disgust at the insignificant position he oc- 
cupied in the government ol' England. Though hus- 
band to the queen, ami nominally king, he was re- 
fused by Parliament both the act of coronation and the 
right of Bucoession. 

Loss of Calais, A.l). 1558. Spain had engaged in 
a war with France, Philip came to England to secure 
the aid oi' Mary. A sudden descent oi' the French 

upon the English coast, and the desire of Mary to 

please her husband, led to a treaty with Spain and a 
declaration of war with France. Man's cup o( misery 



MARY. 153 

was tilled to the brim when the mows reached her that 
Calais, the boast and pride of England for two cen- 
turies, and its last possession on the continent, was 
wrested forever from English rule. Situated in the 
midst of marshes, it had been the practice to withdraw 
a portion of the garrison during the winter, and the 
defenses had been oi' late much neglected. Suddenly 
attacked by sm and land by the Duke of Guise, it was 
forced to surrender, after holding out eight days in the 
vain hope oi' relief. Said the wretched queen, rt AVhen 
1 die Calais will he found written on my heart ;" and 
slu> died, in less than a year, of a broken heart. 

Extenuation of Mary's Cruelty. While the perse- 
cutions to which Mary was constantly spurring her 
lagging bishops, wore atrocious, we can, at least, credit 
her with lidelity to her convictions. Brought up in a 
court as absolute as that o{' an eastern despot, and 
where a human life weighed little against a whim of the 
king, and reigning in an age not yet risen to even a faint 
conception of the perfect freedom of opinion, which is the 
crowning glory of that in which we live, there is some 
palliation for her bigotry and her cruelty. Mary consci- 
entiously, and, in the only way she knew, by force, 
undertook to extirpate what she thought was heresy, 
and re-establish what she believed was truth. Nor 
should the facts of her personal history bo forgotten. 
Disowned by her father just as she was entering 
womanhood, and branded as illegitimate by statute, 
and so cherishing for many years a hitter sense of 
prong; despised and forsaken by a husband she 
adored; hated by a people whose welfare she sought 
io promote ; crushed with a sense of shame at the loss 



Ibi MAKY. 

of Calais, and worn and wasted with disease, it is u<i 
wonder she sank tinder an overwhelming load of woe. 
The title "Bloody," however justly prefixed to the name 
of Mary, could have beeu more appropriately given to 
her father, for much of whose cruelty there is no ex- 
tenuation. 

Elizabeth, 1558 to 1G03 — U years. Tudor. 

Protestantism Restored to England. The universal 
gloom that had settled over England during the last 
years of Mary's cruel reign, full of indications of a 
coming storm, passed quickly away amidst the pealing 
hells and blazing bon-fires that everywhere greeted 
Elizabeth's accession to power. The very day she 
entered London,the prison doors were opened wide to 
all confined lor conscience' sake, still further heighten- 
ing the universal joy. The first official act of the new 
queen was to restore (he Protestant religion. The 
"Oath of Supremacy" required all bishops, priests, 
and civil officers to acknowledge Elizabeth as the Su- 
preme Head oi' the Church, and to deny allegiance to 
all foreign authority. By foreign authority was meant 
the pope. All the bishops but one or two, refusing to 
take this oath, were removed from their sees, and Pro- 
testants put in their places, lint the priests in the 
country parishes, almost without exception, took the 
required oath, and were not disturbed. As fast as 
their places, from any cause, became vacant, they were 
filled by Protestant clergymen, so that, in process of 
time, all the pulpits in tho kingdom came to be in 
sympathy with tho new religion. The "Act of Uni- 
formity" required all the people to conform to the 



ELIZABETH. 155 

usages of the established Church. Even the neglect of 
public worship was punished with fine and imprison* 
nient. The Book of Common Prayer, somewhat im- 
proved, returned to its old place in the religious ser- 
vice. Thirty-nine "Articles of Faith"' became the 
standard of religious belief. 

The Puritans. There appeared during this reign 
a new sect of Protestants called Puritans. The perse- 
cutions of Mary had driven into exile thousands of 
English Protestants. Many of them took refuge in 
Geneva, where, under Zwingle and Calvin, the Refor- 
mation had taken a more radical type than in Eng- 
land. By the Calvinists, as the Swiss Reformers 
were called, the surplice, liturgy, and bishops of Episco- 
pacy, and every form and ceremony peculiar to Rome, 
were utterly discarded. Even that beautiful symbol, 
the Cross, was banished as an abomination, not only 
from religious worship, but from the church edifice it- 
self; and " Merry Christmas," the joyful anniversary of 
the birth of our Lord, was metamorphosed into a solemn 
Fast, because both Cross and Christmas were so inti- 
mately associated with the Papacy. When Mary died, 
the English exiles returned to their homes, but brought 
with them the plainer worship and stricter mode of life 
t hey had learned to love abroad. The severe simplicity 
and purity of their religious faith, made the rule and 
compass of their daily life, produced character of the 
type of Sparta, of the mould of early Rome. Puritan- 
ism was a reform of Episcopacy, as the latter had 
been of Catholicism ; so that Episcopacy occupied a 
middle ground between the two extremes. It retained 
many of the forms and ceremonies of the Papacy, while 



lj(i ELIZABETH. 

its system of faith was like that of the Puritans. 

Despite its narrowness and bigotry -lor its disciples 
did nni rise entirely above the age in which they 
lived -there is nothing grander in all history than 
the achievements of the Puritans during the sixteenth 
and seventeenth centuries. One of these was the 
settlement of the Plymouth Colony in New England. 
How it ennobles our conceptions of humanity and deep- 
ens our faith in virtue to read the inspiring story of 
the Pilgrim Fathers -the story of their sublime forti- 
tude, patience, suffering, as with unquestioning faith, 
they obeyed the simple voice of conscience. They 
shrank from no sacrifice, exhibited unconscious heroism 
combined with the deepest humility, and achieved the 
grandest results without a thought o\' worldly fame. 
That little colony, with other early settlements, has he- 
conic a mighty nation, the refuge oi' the oppressed of all 
the earth. 

Dangers Hint Environed Elizabeth. Many dan, 

gers besel Elizabeth on her accession to the throne and 

during the earlier years of her reign. The government 

was deeply in debt, there was no money in the treas- 
ury, and the coinage had been debased. The English 
Channel was infested with pirates, commerce nearly 
extinguished, and the national industries in a languish- 
ing state. There was civil strife in Ireland, and war 
with Franoe, 

Though the Puritans were a source ol' increasing 
embarrassment to Elizabeth, on account oi' the rapid 
increase in their numbers and their sturdy adherence 
to their peculiar views, her chief danger lay in the 
hostility of the Catholics, both at home and abroad. 
Pope Clement Y 1 1 . had never recognized Anne Boleyn 



ELIZABETH. 157 

as the lawful wife of Henry VIII., and Paul IV. now 
refused to acknowledge Elizabeth as their lawful issue, 
saying to the English ambassador scut to announce her 
accession, thai "Elizabeth, being illegitimate, could 
not ascend the throne without 'his consent." "Let 
her," said he, "in the first place submit her claims to 
my decision." Later, when Elizabeth had taken her 
stand as a Protestant, Pins Y. issued against her a bull 
of excommunication, and joined aleague of ( latholic pow- 
ers to remove her from the throne and elevate Mary, 
Queen of Scots, her next of kin and prospective heir. 

Her course in matters of religion, as well as her 
refusal o( the oiler i)i' his hand, made shortly after her 
accession, entirely alienated Philip of Spain, who, for 
political reasons, was at tirst inclined to be friendly. 
Philip was the most powerful monarch in Europe. His 
empire embraced Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, 
portions o{' Italy, the most of South America, and the 
Indies, Past and West. I lis armies had more than 
once marched to the gates of Paris, and his fleets com- 
manded every sea. France was as hostile as Spain 
to the government of Elizabeth, warmly supporting the 
claims of Mary, Queen of Scots, to the English throne. 

Elizabeth's Policy. With a title somewhat preca- 
rious, the ruler of a part of one small island, whose 
population did not exceed six millions, without sol- 
diers, ships, or allies, it would have been madness in 
Elizabeth, in the earlier part of her reign, to have 
courted conflict with any of the hostile nations 
around her. She needed time and peace, to en- 
able her to establish her personal authority, to 
plant the Church of England on a solid basis, to 



158 ELIZABETH. 

develop tin. resources of the kingdom, and to build up a 
navy. To p teserve peace aud gain time taxed, con- 
stantly and to the utmost, the resources of Elizabeth 
and her ablest nxiiiisters. It was for this that she alter- 
nately raised and dashed the hopes of half a dozen 
royal suitors for her hand. It was for this that she en- 
gaged in endless negotiations and perpetual intrigues 
with foreign powers, holding Spain at bay by threaten- 
ing alliance with France, and keeping France in check 
through fear of a treaty with Spain, deceiving neither, 
in fact, but outwitting and perplexing both. While 
accomplishing her object, the preservation of peace, 
she won for herself that reputation for duplicity and 
mendacity, in her public as well as her private rela- 
tions, that has left so indelible a stain on her memory. 
Whether deliberately planned or not, the moderate 
ground she had at first taken in religion, added to her 
personal power and to the peace of her kingdom. She 
punished no man for his opinion, so long as he con- 
formed to the requirements of the established church; 
and this was a step far in advance of her predecessors, 
as well as of the age in which she lived. Had she 
taken decided ground with either Catholic or Puritan 
extreme, she must, sooner or later, have faced a Puritan 
or a Catholic revolt. As it was, the great body of both 
religious sects remained staunch in their loyalty ; and 
when at length the long-deferred crisis came, and 
Philip, towards the end of her reign, undertook the 
conquest of England, they rallied with fervent devo- 
tion around the royal standard. Side by side in the 
muster at Tilbury stood Catholic, Puritan, and Epis- 
copalian, alike ready to die for their country and 



ELIZABETH. 159 

queen. Catholic gentry and Puritan traders alike 
offered their ships, all manned and equipped, for the 
struggle with the " Great Armada." When the threat- 
ened invasion had ended in disaster, and the galleons 
of Philip, beaten and broken, had straggled up the 
Tagus, a mere remnant of the mighty armament that 
had .sailed out so proudly a few months before, and 
when England at once came to the front, undisputed 
mistress of the seas, the early peaceful policy of the 
great queen was amply vindicated. She might then 
have appropriated the proud boast of the great but 
patient Mazarin : "Time and I against any two." 

This is a general view of the policy pursued by 
Elizabeth during the greater part of her reign, under 
the guidance of her able ministers, Burleigh and 
Walsingham. There remain to be noticed, briefly 
and connectedly, the relation of Mary, Queen of Scots 
to English history, and the well-matured but ill-starred 
expedition of Philip, just alluded to. 

Mary, Queen of Scots. Mary, Queen of Scots,* 
though passed over in the will of Henry VIII. , was 
the next heir to the throne after Elizabeth. She had 
been betrothed, when an infant, to Prince Edward, 
Henry's son and successor ; but French and Catholic 
influence availed not only to break up the match with 
Edward, but to eifect her marriage with the Dauphin, 
who, upon the death of his father, assumed the French 
Crown, under the title of Francis II. Mary, Queen of 
Scotland by inheritance, Queen of France by mar- 

* Margaret, the eldest daughter of Henry VII., married James IV. of Scot- 
land. Their son, James V., was the father of Mary, who inherited the king- 
dom under the title of Mary, Queen of Scots. 



160 ELIZABETH. 

riage, now assumed the title of Queen o\' England, 
claiming, as did the Catholic world in general, th.it 
Elizabeth was not the rightful sovereign. 

Tito Reformation, under the preaching of John KiioXj 
had made great progress in Scotland. A French force 
had been sent to that country, for the double purpose 
of orushins out the Reformation and strengthening 
French interests. Elizabeth, conscious that her own 
throne, as well as the Protestant religion, was menaced 
by the action oi' France, hurried an army across the 
border to the help oi' the Scots. The French army 
was besieged in Leithand foroed to sue tor peace. By 
the treaty of Edinburgh, the French engaged to leave 
the country, and Mary to renounce her claims to the 
English throne during the lile-time of Elizabeth. 
Mary refused to ratify her part oi' the treaty, and per- 
sisted in her refusal till near the end oi' her life. At 
the death of her husband, Francis 11., she returned to 
her kingdom oi' Scotland and soon married Lord Darn- 
ley, the next heir to the Scottish throne. 

Mary and Darnley were ardent Catholios, but their 
subjects were Largely Protestant : and there naturally 
arose on the part of the latter groat apprehension as to 
the future policy of the government in matters of relig- 
ion. They sought to obtain from the queen a formal 
recognition o\' Protestantism as the national religion. 
This Mary would not give, but she expressed her readi- 
ness to assent to perfect religious toleration. The Prot- 
estants, believing that she designed the restoration of 
Catholicism, rose in arms. Putting herself at the head 
of her troops, with " pistols at her saddle-bow," the 



ELIZABETH. 10 1 

resolute queen soon quelled the revolt, and the banished 
lords took refuge in England. 

Though Mary was but little over twenty three years 
of age, she had reached the crisis period in her career, 
\\Y are soon to see her fall, either innocent of serious 
offence, bu1 hopelessly entangled in a net-work of mis- 
fortunes, or guilty of heinous crime and richly meriting 
the doom she speedily met, Since history has Tailed to 
furnish conclusive evidence of her guilt, let us remember 
her as the unfortunate Mary, Queen of Scots. 

Mary's love and respect were changed to dislike and 
contempt, for a husband who treated her unkindly, and 
was addicted to many vices. Darnley, attributing the 
change in her feelings to the influence of her private 
secretary, Rizzio, of whom he was also jealous, en- 
tered the queen's apartments, at the head of a band of 
disatfected nobles, and slew Rizzio, almost in her very 
presence, alike indifferent to her menaces or entreaties. 
Though apparently reconciled to her husband, the 
Earl of Bothwell became her confidential adviser, 
ami, at last, the object of her affections. In less than 
a year after the murder of Rizzio, a house in Edin- 
burgh, called the Kirk of Field, in which Darnley was 
lying sick, was, one night, blown up with gunpowder, 
and its unhappy inmate killed. That Bothwell was 
guilty of the crime is morally certain ; but that Mary was 
accessory to it, there is no conclusive proof. Her speedy 
marriage with Bothwell, under circumstances peculiarly 
suspicious, created the most intense excitement, The 
Scotch lords tlew to arms, and made the <picen their 
prisoner. She was required to choose between war 



Ifi2 ELIZABETH. 

and the banishment of Both well. She ohose the latter,* 
and was then hurried to Castle Loohleven, and forced 
to resign her crown in favor of her infant son. 

Escaping in L568, after nine months of captivity in 
the lonely island castle, she rallied her adherents, Lost 
the battle of Langside, and was chased to the 
Solway, which she crossed in a boat, and look refuge 
in England, She demanded of Elizabeth a passage to 
France, or an army to recover her kingdom. Her 
demands were met by a royal order for her detention, 

and then her imprisonment. It' she had been a cause 

of alarm to Elizabeth before, she became doubly so 

now. Her release and elevation to the English throne 
itself became the object <>i' plot after plot among 
Catholics, both ;il home and abroad. Pope Tins V. 

issued a decree of deposition against Elizabeth. Jesuit 

and Seminary missionaries came into the kingdom in 

unusual numbers, claiming to be inspired only by a desire 
to perpetuate the Catholic faith, but believed by Elizabeth 
to have come to awaken discontent and excite insurrection 

among her Catholic subjects. Tin 1 Spanish ambassador, 

Mendoza, being implicated in some of these schemes, was 
ordered to leave die kingdom. Finally a Catholio plot, 
under the leadership of one Babington, to assassinate 1 Eliza- 
beth and proclaim Mary, was brought in light, implicating 
Mary herself. Elizabeth was now oompelled to aot in 
defenoe of her life and throne. Mary, tried by a com- 
mission of Peers, in L587, wis found guilty and con- 
demned to death, and the queen reluotantly signed the 

* The banished Bothwell made his home among the Orkneys, and heoame 
tin- leader of :< band or pirates. Being pursued) he found shelter, for awhile, 
among the Shetland Isles, whence ho escaped to Denmark, « here in- died n> n 
JunKeon. 



ELIZABETH. 163 

wurrant for hoi execution. In the hall of Fotheringay 
Castle, her last prison house, this weary captive of 
nineteen long and dreary years, saddened by sorrow, 
but heroic still, calmly laid her head upon the block. 

Her brilliant qualities of mind and person, the calm 
dignity with which she bore misfortune, and her affect* 
ing death-scene, have touched the cord of universal 
sympathy, and thrown a veil of charity over the frail- 
ties of her Life and character. Both Council and Parlia- 
ment considered Mary's death a State necessity. What 
would have been the result of her liberation we can 
only conjecture; but her execution was closely followed 
by the most imminent peril that ever menaced the 
throne of Elizabeth, if not the liberties of England. 
Of the disposition of Alary herself, we have the clearest 
expression in a letter to Elizabeth, written during the 
last of her captivity, when longings for liberty had 
overcome all worldly ambitions. "Let me go," she 
wrote, "let me retire from this island to some solitude, 
where 1 may prepare my soul to die. Grant this, and 
1 will sign away every right which either I or mine 
can claim." Elizabeth turned a deaf car to this touch- 
ing appeal, and Mary then bequeathed all her rights to 
the English throne to Philip of Spain, — rights which 
Philip promptly claimed and began the most gigantic 
preparations to enforce. 

The Maritime Growth of England. It seems neces- 
sary at this point to notice briefly the maritime growth 
of England. Elizabeth's moderate and pacific policy, 
persistently followed for thirty years, had produced the 
happiest results. The nation's advance in wealth and 
power had been rapid and healthful. Unexampled 



164 ELIZABETH. 

thrift characterized all its industries, while its com 
merer whitened every sea, pouring into London, then 
just becoming the great trade-mart of the civilized 
world, the wealth of every land and clime. 

The thirst for adventure and discovery had sent 
daring spirits into every nook and corner of the earth, 
whose glowing reports of the wonders they had seen 
stimulated fresh expeditions, and opened to English 
enterprise new avenues of trade. It had led Chan- 
cellor to penetrate the Arctic ocean towards the east, 
and open a lucrative trade with Archangel. It had 
lured Davis and Frobisher into the same ocean towards 
the west, in search of a shorter passage to India. It 
had sent the famous Hawkins to the tropics, and opened 
an inexhaustible source of wealth in the ivory, gold- 
dust and slaves of Guinea. There was an extensive 
and growing trade with the ports of the North, Baltic 
and Mediterranean seas. Every harbor on the coast 
had long sent out its fishing boats into the waters 
around, but now England began to rival France in the 
number of vessels sent to the cod-fisheries of New- 
foundland and the whale-fisheries of the Polar seas. 

There was another cause for the maritime develop- 
ment of England. The persecution of the Huguenots 
of France and the patriot Reformers in the Netherlands 
had awakened the sympathies of English Protestants, 
lint its 'politic queen coolly continued negotiations 
for marriage with a Catholic prince of France, even 
after the massacre of St. Bartholomew; and she long 
looked with apparent indifference at the butcheries 
of Alva in the Netherlands. The English people 
finally took the matter into their own hands, and 



ELIZABETH. 105 

made war on their own account. They flocked to tho 
Netherlands by thousands and joined the Protestant 
army. English "sea-dogs," as they were called, com- 
missioned as privateers by Conde of France and the 
Prince of Orange, or flying the French and Dutch flags 
without commissions, simply pirates, swarmed in all 
the waters frequented by French or Spanish traders. 
Aided by the English people all along the coast, and 
often by the royal officers themselves, prizes were con- 
stantly run into secret inlets and their cargoes dis- 
charged. Drake, the boldest spirit of them all, haunted 
the unguarded coasts of Spanish America, burning 
towns and intercepting Spanish galleons bound to Ca- 
diz, laden with gold, silver, and diamonds for the 
Spanish king. In such schools were the brave and 
hardy mariners of England trained for the hot work 
which Philip was soon to furnish them. 

Elizabeth's Defiance of Philip. Affairs were fast 
coming to an issue between Elizabeth and Philip. The 
foimer had long been embittered by Philip's secret 
efforts to awaken discontent among her Catholic sub- 
jects ; the latter as long enraged at Elizabeth's 
duplicity in secretly aiding tho Netherlander, and 
shielding English pirates on Spanish commerce, while 
professing peace with Spain. Towards the last, Eliza- 
beth threw off the mask. Under the pressure of public 
sentiment after the assassination of the Prince of 
Orange, and conscious that the Reformation in the 
Netherlands, unaided, must soon expire, she sent an 
array of eight thousand men to their assistance. It 
was under the command of the Earl of Leicester, 
one of Elizabeth's favorites, and accomplished little. 



lfifi ELIZABETH. 

The campaign [a chiefly memorable for the death of one 

of its most accomplished officers, Sir Philip Sidney. 
He received a mortal wound at the siege of Zutphen. 
When about to partake of a little water that had been 
procured with great difficulty, he saw a wounded sol- 
dier looking wistfully at it. "Take it," said the chiv- 
alric Sidney, who was himself burning with thirst, 
"thy necessities are greater than mine." 

When Drake returned from one of his expedi- 
tions, enriched with the gold and jewels taken from 
Spanish galleons, and Philip demanded the surrender 
of the "pirate," Elizabeth publicly conferred on the 
latter the honor of knighthood, and wore the captured 
jewels in her hair. The death o\' Mary , Queen of Scots 
put an end to Philip's irresolution. 

The Invincible Armada. Besides dethroning Eliza- 
beth, it was Philip's aim to restore Catholicism to Eng- 
land. To this double purpose, he now bent all his 
energies, and turned the vast resources of the whole 
Spanish empire. For three years, ships and stores 
were slowly coming into the Tagus, and forming what 
Philip boastfully called the " Invincible Armada." 
The English rovers were all called home. Drake, 
with a fleet of thirty sail, hovered about the Spanish 
coast, picking up Spanish traders ami attacking un- 
guarded points. Boldly entering the harbor oi' Cadiz, 
ho destroyed the ships and stores collected there, de- 
laying tin 4 sailing o\' the Armada for many months. 

The great licet left the Tagus the last of May, 
L588. Overtaken by a storm, it put into Corunna to 
refit. The last o[' duly, its approach to the English 
coast, under the command of the Duke of Medina 



ELIZABETH. 167 

Sidonia, was signaled by blazing beacons on every 
hill-top. It swept slowly up the English channel, in 
the form of an extended crescent, seven miles from 
wing to wing. It was composed of one hundred and 
fifty ships, many of them of immense burthen. Od 
its roar closely hung the English fleet of eighty 
sail, under the command of Lord Howard. Drake 
had command of the " sea-dogs," among whom were 
Hawkins and Frobisher. The huge and unwieldy 
galleons of Spain were raptured or sunk, one by one, 
by the lighter and more active craft of the English 
Still the mighty fleet held steadily on its way and 
dropped anchor in the roads of Calais. The Duke of 
Parma had.been in camp at Dunkirk with thirty thou- 
sand men, ready to land on the English coast as soon 
as the Armada should arrive io protect their passage 
across the channel. Howard saw the necessity of de- 
cisive action to prevent the crossing of Parma's troops. 
The next night eight English ships, filled with combus- 
tibles and set on tire, were towed towards the Spanish 
vessels, and sent, with tide and wind, into thoir very 
midst, as they lay crowded together at anchor. The 
affrighted Spaniards cut their cables and lied to the 
open sea, stretching away in a broken line along the. 
coast. At break of day, the fearless "sea-dogs," under 
the lead of Drake, fell upon the disordered line, and 
sunk, captured, or forced on shore, Spaniard after 
Spaniard, driving the still numerous but panic-stricken 
licet northward. Medina no longer thought of the cou- 
UUesI of England, but of safety for his broken and 
scattered licet. Not daringto return through the En<>-- 
lish Channel in the face of Drake, he sought to make 



Ifi8 ELIZABETH. 

the circuit of Scotland and Ireland, and roach Spain bv 
way of the Atlantic. Drake, having exhausted, his 
ammunition, gave up the pursuit, and the Hying Span- 
iards disappeared in the waters of the North Sea. 
Overtaken by tierce storms, and unacquainted with the 
navigation of those dangerous seas, their unwieldy 
and disabled galleons were dashed upon the wild and 
rocky shores. The hapless crews escaped a watery 
grave, only to die at the hands of the inhabitants. 
Eight thousand oi' the very chivalry of Spain arc said 
to have perished on the western coast ot' Ireland. 
Nearly a hundred ships and fourteen thousand men 
were missing, when the shattered remains of the "In- 
vincible Armada" once more dropped anchor in Span- 
ish waters. 

The Spanish king received the news of the destruc- 
tion of the Armada "with his usual constancy," saying, 
with unchanged countenance, "1 sent it against man 
and not against the billows." The English, too, recog- 
nized the tact that the elements, perhaps more than 
English valor, had won for them the victory. On an 
old English medal, commemorating the event, this in- 
scription was written: — 

w Flavit Jehovah et dissipati sunt" 
"Jehovah blew and they were scattered." 

England's supremacy on the high seas was now 
achieved. Philip, indeed, with the energy of despair, 
gathered another Armada, but this only brought Drake 
and the English " sea-dogs " once more to the Spanish 
coast. Cadi/ was taken and burned to the ground, and 
its ships and stores again destroyed. lie once more 
became the scourge of Spanish America, taking treas- 



ELIZABETH. 1(>9 

are-laden galleons and destroying settlements j but all 
sense of danger from Spain passed away from Elizabeth 
and her people. 

Great Names. The impulse given to learning in the 
preceding reigns, favored by the long peace of the 
present, began to bear fruit. Men of genius appeared 
in every department of intellectual labor. Raleigh, 
Spencer, Hooker, Bacon, Sidney, and Shakspeare are 
among the most illustrious names. There was a host of 
lesser lights. Though Elizabeth had the wisdom to be 
guided by statesmen in public affairs, in private life 
she admitted to favor men of little ability and still less 
virtue. 

Death of Elizabeth. The closing years of her life 
were made sad and gloomy by the execution for trea- 
son of the last of her favorites, the Earl of Essex. 
In a moment of tenderness, years before, Elizabeth 
had given him a ring, requesting him to send it to 
her if he ever needed her help. Now that the earl 
lay under sentence of death, she looked, confidently, 
day after day, for the ring. But it never came ; and 
the disappointed but resentful queen gave her signature 
to the fatal sentence ; and the unfortunate earl -was soon 
beyond the reach of mortal aid. Not long after this, 
the Countess of Nottingham, when on her death-bed, 
called the queen to her side, and confessed to her that 
Essex had sent the ring, and that she, out of enmity 
to him, had withheld it. Elizabeth's resentment at 
what she had believed to be the earl's contempt for her 
favor, changed to a paroxysm of rage and grief. 
Shaking the dying countess, who was praying for her 
pardon, Elizabeth cried, " God may forgive you but I 



170 ELIZABETH. 

never can." She became a prey to melancholy that 
deepened with her tailing strength, until she died, liko 
her sister, broken-hearted. On the night of her death 
she was asked to name her successor. At the mention 
of Lord Beauohamp, a member of the royal family, 
she said, with a touch of the old Tudor spirit, " I will 
have no rogue's son in my seat." James VI., king of 
Scotland was named, but she was speechless and could 
only signify her assent. The next morning, March 
84th, L603, she died, and dames became king of Eng- 
land, with the title of dames I. 

Character Of Elizabeth. En character, Elizabeth 
was a mass of contradictions. She had, in a marked 
degree, the iron will, imperious temper, and sound 
judgment of her father, the insincerity, vacillation 
and vanity of her mother. She was often coarse in 
her manners, and sometimes profane in her speech. 
Though arbitrary in her rule, like her father, she was 
never a tyrant like him, and she knew how to yield 
when the occasion required concession. Two years 
before her death she granted a large number of monop- 
olies to favored -persons. Seeing the dissatisfaction 
they had created, she sent a message to the House 
of Commons, announcing the reversal of all the grants. 
To a committee sent to express the gratitude of the 
House for the gracious act, she returned her thanks 
for reminding her of a mistake into which she had fall- 
en through an error of judgment. From her supreme 
desire to win the love and promote the welfare of her 
subjects, despite her faults, she was known in her day, 
among the great mass of the English people, and had 
come down to us in history, as " Good Queen Hess." 



CHAPTER IX. 



House of Stuart, 1603 to 1714 — 111 years. 



JAMES I. 
CHARLES I. 
COMMONWEALTH. 
CHARLES II. 



JAMES II. 
WILLIAM and MART. 

ANNE. 



James I., 1603 to 1625 — 22 years. Stuart. 

Union of Scotch and English Crowns. James 1. 
was the representative of the royal families of both 
England and Scotland, and so united both their crowns. 
Although these countries now came under one king, 
their constitutional union, or union of Parliaments, did 
not take place till the reign of Queen Anne. 

Persecution of Non-Conformists. The increasing 
severities towards non-conformists in the latter part of 
Elizabeth's reign, excited an intense anxiety in the pub- 
lic mind, to know what would be the policy of her suc- 
cessor. Before James reached London, he had been 
approached by both Catholics and Puritans ; the former 
basing their hopes on his promise of toleration of 
Catholic worship, given to secure Catholic support, 
and the latter expecting much from his Puritan edu- 
cation. Both were doomed to disappointment. He 
avowed himself an Episcopalian ; and although at first 
tolerant, he began ere long to execute the laws against 
non-conformists with more rigor than Elizabeth had 
done. 

(171) 



1V2 JAMES l. 

Iii January, 1604, the king had called a convention* 
of Episcopal and Puritan divines, to discuss the religious 
question. The hope thai this convention would bring 
harmony among the clashing sects was not realized. 
King James, who had been the principal speaker in 
behalf of the Established Church, angry at the obstinacy 
of the Puritans, who failed to be convinced by his 
arguments, sought to convert them by a threat. "I 
will make them conform," said he, as the convention 
closed, "or 1 will harry them out of the land.'" The 
persecutions that followed forced multitudes to seek in 
foreign lands the safety and protection tliej could not 
have in their own. 

The Gunpowder Plot. The discontent of some of 
the Catholics at the persecutions to which they were 
subjected, found expression in the "Gunpowder Plot," 
a scheme to blow up Parliament House, when king, 
lords, and commons were assembled. The conspirators 
hired the basement of the building, ostensibly for 
business purposes, and concealed therein thirty-six 
barrels of gunpowder. A warning sent to a Catholic 
lord, November -1th, L605, the dav before the meeting 
of Parliament, led to an investigation. The powder 
was found under a pile of wood and fagots, and Guy 
Fawkes, the keeper of the cellar, preparing slow 
matches for the explosion on the morrow. The con- 
spirators dispersed in every direction, and sought 

* This convention accomplished but one thing of Importance, the Issue, in 1611, 
If a new translation of the Bible, called " King James 1 Version," the one still used 
by most Protestants. The translation used by Roman Catholics is called "The 
Douay Bible," of which the New Testament was printed at Rheimsinl58S and 
the Old at Dona; In 1609-10. 



JAMES I. 173 

places of concealment, but most of them were ferreted 
out and put to death. Although the Catholics as a 
body were not responsible for this diabolical plot. 
it gave a death-blow to Catholic hopes of toleration. 
The laws againsl "Popish recusants" were made more 
severe and executed more rigorously than ever. They 
were required to take a new oath, renouncing the right 
of the pope to excommunicate princes, or absolve sub- 
jects from their allegiance. 

The Pilgrim Fathers. One little Puritan band, 
after a brief stay in Holland, took passage in the May- 
flower and sought, across the broad Atlantic, a refuge 
in the wilderness of the New World, content to sever 
the tender tics that bound them to home and country, 
and endure all possible hardships, that they might wor- 
ship God as conscience directed them. The " Pilgrim 
Fathers," as we are wont to call these first settlers in 
New England, landed at Plymouth, in the depth of 
winter, December 21st, 1G20. 

This was not the first permanent settlement made by 
the English on the continent. In 1606, three years 
after James's accession to power, two companies were 
chartered for the settlement of America. The terri- 
tory of the London Company extended from the 34th 
to the 38th parallels of latitude, corresponding roughly 
with the mouths of the Cape Fear and Potomac rivers ; 
that of the Plymouth Company from the 41st to the 
45th parallels, corresponding with the mouths of the 
Hudson and St. Croix. The country between was 
open to settlement by either company. In 1607, under 
the auspices of the London Company, an expedition 
entered Chesapeake bay, and made a settlement at 



I VI JAMBS i. 

Jamestown, on the James river, aboul fifty miles from 
its mouth. An attempt made by the Plymouth Com- 
pany, the same year, l»> plant :i oolony Dear the mouth 
of the Kennebec, was u<>i successful. 

James's Assumption in Hatters of Religion. Jame& 
was ;i man of one idea, and that the inherited and abso- 
lute rights of kings. But tliis doctrine of the "divine 
right of kings" was uot only a favorite theory, ever 

on the royal lips, hut also the key-note to the royal 

policy, hoih in church ami state. Parliament assem- 
bled in L604. The House of Commons was Largely 
Puritan, and its temper, in view of (lie absolutism set 

Up by flames, is clearly seen in its action. It petitioned 

lor a redress of grievances in matters o( religion The 

king's deoided rejection o( this petition was met by 

the equally deoided protest on tin' part of the House: 

" Let your majesty be pleased to reoeive publio infor- 
mation from your Commons in Parliament, as well oi' 

the abuses in the Churoh :is in the oivil State. Your 
majesty would he misinformed if any man should de- 
liver thai tin* kings of England have any absolute power 
in themselves, either to alter religion or to make any 
laws oonoerniug the same, otherwise than as in tem- 
poral causes, by consent oi' Parliament." 

James's Assumption in Mailers of Government. 
James levied a tax on all exports and imports, and 
obtained a decision from the judges in favor of its 
legality. The House of Commons then petitioned for 
& redress of grievances in matters o( state. 1 lis re- 
fusal to granl this petition brought another protest and 
prayer that a law he made to declare "that all iniposi- 



JAMBS 1. 17f) 

lions set upon your people, theii goods, or merchandise, 
Bave only l>y common oonsent in Parliament, are and 
shall be void/' Parliament was promptly dissolved, 
hut the necessities of the king compelled its speedy re- 
assembling. The questions dividing king and Parlia- 
ment went to the people, and beoame the issue in the 

election of new members. The new House of (om- 
inous w;is more decidedly opposed (o (lie policy of Urn 

king than the old one. It made a redress of griev- 
ances, especially thai of illegal imposts, the condition 
of a grant of supplies. Its angry dissolution displayed 
the folly ;is well ms obstinaoy of the king. 

Seven years of absolute rule, seven years of relent- 
Less extortion, only served to widen the breaoh between 
king and people. Qlegal imposts continued; the 
odious "benevolences" were revived; the equally 
odious system of " purveyance "* was praotioed without. 
regard to the law; the sale of monopolies and the obso- 
lete system oi' royal wardship, by whieh the incomes 
of the estates held under military (enure went, to 

the king during the minority of the heir, were re- 
newed ; patents of nobility were so freely sold that, at 
the death of James, one-half the peers of England 
were those created by him. The shameless waste of 
the money thus obtained, on a corrupt court, excited 
the disgust as Well as the indignation of the people. 

• Purveyance was an anolent prerogative of the Grown, by whioh the king 
bad the preference overall others In the purchase of supplies. Bo oould 
take thorn at an apprataed value, even without the owner's consent. The 
royal offioers often praotioed great Injustice, purvoyanoe beoomlng under 
Homo of the king* « system of royal robbery, An attempt was made to 
regulate it in Magna Cbarta, ami by repeated enactments in succeeding reigns* 
it won iiiuiiiy mtrrendcri'ii i>y OhafleB II. (Or a compensation. 



176 JAMBS I. 

Persona] favorites took the plaoe of English stairs- 
men, not only in the friendship of the king, but in 
stations of highest responsibility in the government, 
A mere adventurer, one George Villiers, became Duke 
of Buckingham and Minister of State, He a\ as (ho 
Piers Gavestoo of the infatuated king. Promotion to 
office, retention in office, and even access to the person 
of the king, on the part ot* men of the highest rank, 
depended on the pleasure or the bribery ot' this hand- 
some but oorrupl official. 

Foreign Allans. The foreign policy ot" James was 
almost as displeasing to the English people as his man- 
agement of domestic affairs. Just as the life and death 
struggle between Catholics and Protestants was break- 
ing out in Germany, warmly enlisting the sympathies 
of Protestant England in behalf of the latter, James 
was obsequiously courting the favor of Spain, and 
seeking to bring about a marriage between Prince 
Charles and the Spanish Infanta. The cry for another 
Parliament, coming from every quarter of the kingdom, 
forced the king to issue writs for an election. 

The Parliament of 1621. The Parliament of 1621 

is almost as famous as that <^( hi 10, tor the boldness 
with which it opposed the assumptions of the king. It 
demanded a war with Spain instead o[' a treaty oi' al- 
liance, and a Protestant instead o( a Catholic marriage 
for the Prince oi' Wales. " Bring stools for the ambas- 
sadors," was the ironical command of the king', as the 
committee, sent by the House oi' Commons to com- 
municate their demands, was announced. He forbade 
further discussion by the Commons on affairs oi' State, 
n^sertinjr that all their rights were derived from him- 



JAMKS I. 177 

self and hi.-> ancestors. w Let ns pray, and then con- 
sider of this great business," said a member of the 
Commons, as flic king's commands were repeated by 
the committee. The resolution that followed, affirm- 
ing freedom of speech as their ancient right, has the 
ring of the times of Henry III., when an armed baron- 
age boldly confronted the tyrant at Westminster. The 
clanking of swords was then hardly more startling to 
the ears of Henry than the utterances of the Commons 
to James. Willi a purpose as aimless as it was impo- 
tent, In; sent for the journals of the House, and with 
his own hand tore out the leaves containing the ob- 
noxious resolution. James might indeed destroy the 
Parliament recordsj but the spirit of liberty, enkindled 
anew in the hearts of the patriot Commons, he could 
not extinguish. The sudden dissolution of Parliament 
ended the conflict, for the time being. 

Prince Charles. Prince Charles, accompanied by 
Buckingham, visited Spain to complete the marriage 
contract with the Spanish Infanta. Mutual disgust 
broke oil* all negotiations, and Charles returned to 
England, and took sides with the people in demanding 
war. James, disappointed in his hopes of* a Spanish 
alliance, was home along by the popular current into 
another war with Spain. A new marriage was ar- 
ranged for Charles with Henrietta, a princess of France. 
James died before its consummation. 

Sir Walter Raleigh. The name of Sir Walter Ra- 
leigh had long been known in connection with public 
affairs. He began his public career in the reign of Eliza- 
beth, and was prominent as a courtier, statesman and 
commander. Under the patronage of Elizabeth, he sent 



178 JAMES I. 

sevoral expeditions to make settlements in the Now 
World. His first colonists, at Roanoke [sland, were 
ill-fitted for the hardships and privations of a new 
oountry, and look advantage <»t' a chance visit of 
Drake, who was returning from one of his raids on 
Spanish America, to abandon their settlement. His 
Beoond colony, when revisited after (Ik* expiration of 
three years, was found to have disappeared, Leaving no 
trace behind. Early in (ho reign of James, Raleigh, 
being implicated (though on very slight testimony) in 
a conspiracy to overthrow the government and place 
Arabella Stuart, the king's oousin, on (he throne, was 
sent to the Tower, under sentence of death. After 
twelve years of confinement, during which he ocoupied 
the dreary hours of prison life in writing a "History 
of the World," he was released on a promise to guide 
an expedition to a <^old mine in Guiana. But the 
Spaniards, notified (some say by .lames himself) of 
the purpose of (lie expedition, made every prepara- 
tion io defeat, it. Raleigh, broken in spirit and 
fortune, returned to England, only to re-enter the 
Tower, and perish on the seall'old. 

Character of James I. James was plain in person, 

awkward in manners, and intemperate even to drunk- 
enness in his habits; but he had good natural ability 
and considerable Learning, of which he was exces- 
sively vain. His pedantic display o( his Learning led 
Henry IV. of France, to characterize him as the 
"wisest fool in Christendom." The publio contempt 

for his meanness was only surpassed by the public re- 
sentment at his usurpations. lie was at once the most 
puerile and the most presumptuous of English kings. 



JAMES I. 179 

Aw an index of the prevalent feeling towards this king, 
it is said that his peculiarities, both of person and 
character, were publicly caricatured in the theatres of 
Loudon, to the infinite enjoyment of the people. 

Charles L, 1625 to 1649—24 years. Stuart. 

Constitutional Liberty at the Accession of Charles I. 
From the Wars of the Roses to the reign of James I., 
we hear little of constitutional liberty in England. 
Standing, as we now do, at the very threshold of a re- 
newal of the constitutional struggle, a brief retrospect 
will make more intelligible the course of events upon 
which we are about to enter. 

Mediaeval civilization rested on the Feudal System, 
and fell with it, and both went down with the nobility 
in the Wars of the Roses. These wars reduced Eng- 
land to a state bordering on anarchy, and the only 
power that did save it, or that could save it, from utter 
anarchy, was a stable throne. To this all parties turn- 
ed with the instinct of self-preservation. 

The nobility, land owners, and moneyed classes, re- 
membering the leveling doctrines of the socialists, 
looked to the throne to protect them from another peas- 
ant revolt. 

The Church, too, conscious of the silent but vigorous 
growth of communistic, as well as reform, ideas, saw in a 
stable throne the strongest bulwark of social and civil 
orucr, as well as of the Catholic religion. And the peo- 
ple, having endured, during the wars of the Roses, the evils 
of a disputed succession, were ready to welcome any lino 
of kings strong enough to save them from the horrors of 
another civil war. 



1M0 CHARLES l. 

'riic 1 1 « » 1 1 >-; < > of Commons, that ancient hope of thu 
nation , by a sweeping restriction of the elective fran- 
chise, and l>v wholesale corruption in the eleotion <>f 
members, had sunk into a mere appendage <>!' the crown, 
and, under some of the kings, into the great instrument 
of its oppressions. 

W it 1 1« > tit marked violenoe or speoial opposition, the 
king deliberately gathered into his single hand all the 
powers of Church .'iiul State. That he should become 
arbitrary was natural; that ho should grow despotic 
w:is not strange. Between the reigns of Edward 
IV. :iud Charles [., the government of England ranged 
through all shades and degrees of absolutism. 

But even in the midst of absolute rule, silent foroes 
were at work weakening its foundations, and destin- 
ed, in the fulness of time, to accomplish its complete 
overthrow. The diffusion of knowledge and the eleva- 
tion of the masses, had been rapid and general, espec- 
ially after the invention of the printing press. There 
was noiselessly growing up an enlightened public senti- 
ment on the relation of sovereign to subject that was 
tar in advanee of the theory and practioe o{' the gov- 
ernment. Faith in the doctrine oi' the "divine right 
of kings" became weak, as oonviotions of the saored- 
ness of human rights grew strong. 

During the reign of James 1. it was evident that a 

Collision between king and people was at hand. At 
the death of James, there was a lull in the gathering 
Storm that was soon to break over the head <)\' his son 
and SUOOesSOr. It will ever he a matter iA' wonder 
that Charles 1. OOUld so eoinpletely shut his eves to the 
h'i^us of the times, that he should lake no warning 



GHABLBS i. 181 

from his father's mistakes, but should blindly and 
obstinately pursue his father's insane policy. 

Renewal of iho Constitutional Struggle. The strug- 
gle was dearly defined. H was constitutional liberty 
agaiust the royal prerogative, an oppressed people 
against m tyrannical king. The English people, whom 
the crown alone could rescue from the robber barons 
in the reign of Henry II., whom the patriot barons 
alone could shield from the tyranny of lli«' crown 
in Henry lll.,iliis great English people bad :il last 
outgrown dependence on king and baron, and proved 
in the end more than a match lor (hem both. 

Public feeling in England ran high againsl Catholicism 
;il the time of James's death. The "Thirty Xears'War" 
in ( Germany, beginning in :i contest between the Elector 
Palatine of the Rhine and Ferdinand, Emperor of Aus- 
tria, for (he Bohemian crown, had widened into a life 
and death struggle between Catholics and Protest- 
ants. Besides the sympathy English Protestants felt 
for (heir brethren in Germany, they were naturally in- 
terested in behalf of the Elector, who was son-in-law to 
King James. Spain hud openly taken sides with the 
Emperor, and England hud entered the lists against 
Spain, besides sending :t sm;ill army to the help of the 
Elector. Butthe war with Spain lagged through the 
indifference of the government led by Buckingham, ih<^ 
chief minister of State. King ( !harles demanded a sub- 
sidy; but Parliament, suspicions of his intontions, and 
watchful of the liberties of England, limited the 
usual granl of certain life customs to a year. Resent- 
ing the limitation, ( 'barles refused to accept the vote, and 
levied ( he customs on his own authority. Parliament 



IS '2 CHARLES 1. 

then proceeded to discuss the public grievances, and 
was dissolved. A fruitless expedition against Cadiz, 
under Buckingham, leaving the king deeply in debt, 
oompelled its re-assembling in 1626. Instead of reliev- 
ing the king's necessities, the House of Commons, 
guided by that dauntless patriot. Sir John Eliot, pro- 
ceeded to impeach the officers of the crown. Charges 
of corruption against Buckingham were carried in the 
House. Eliot, in a speech full oi' scathing invective, 
then arraigned the royal favorite before the House of 
Lords, and ^as sent by the angry king to the Tower. 
The refusal of the Commons to art on public affairs 
caused Eliot's release, but their request for the dismis- 
sion of Buckingham brought another dissolution. Then 
followed more illegal taxation in the form oi' "benev- 
olences" and "forced loans." Although many of the 
clergy preached the doctrine of passive obedience, 
men everywhere refused to give or lend to the king. 
Poor and friendless offenders were pressed into the 
army or navy ; the rich and noble were thrown into 
prison or summoned before the Council. 

Buckingham now had an opportunity to retrieve his 
falling tort unes. During the first year oi' his reign, 
Charles had married Henrietta Maria, a French princess. 
The marriage stipulation with reference to the toleration 
of Catholics* having been broken by the king, Richelieu 
and Olivarez, the able ministers oi' France and Spain, 
planned a joint invasion of England, Buckingham 
sought to checkmate this scheme oi' invasion by an 
attack on France. He sailed with a large tleet to the 
relief oi' Kochelle, the stronghold oi' the Huguenots, 
which was besieged by French Catholics. Another 



CHARLES I. 183 

disaster, more shameful than that at Cadiz, left the king 
still deeper in debt, and compelled the i me of writs 
for another Parliament . 

Petition of Right, A.I). 1628. The people, now 
thoroughly aroused, returned a House more hostile to 
the king than the former one. Like that, it demanded 
redress before a grant of money. It proceeded to array 
its grievances and frame its demands into that second 
great charter of Liberties, the "Petition of Bight." 
This Petition forbade forced loans, benevolences, and 
every species of illegal taxation, imprisonment, and 
punishment; forbade martial law and the billeting of 
soldiers upon the people in time of peace', and im- 
posed obedience to the laws on the ministers of the 
crown. The refusal of the king to sign this Petition 
was followed by a " Remonstrance on the State of the 
Kingdom." At the mention of Buckingham's name, 
against whom the Remonstrance was aimed, the 
speaker forbade further discussion, saying that he held 
a royal order to allow no member to speak against the 
ministers of the crown. The effect of this direct 
interference with free speech, one of the most unques- 
tioned privileges of Parliament, beggars description. 
Eliot, who was addressing the House, sank stunned 
into his seat. There were a few moments of death- 
like silence, followed by sounds of suppressed excite- 
ment, and then exclamations of amazement, grief, 
anger, broke here and there from the seething assem- 
bly. Some wept and some prayed. Members rose to 
speak, but sat down overpowered with emotion. The 
renerable Sir Edward Coke at last took the floor, and 
in scathing language denounced Buckingham as the 



18-4 CIIARLES i. 

author of all the perils that menaced the liberties of 
England. Charles, alarmed at the dangers that threat- 
ened hi^ favorite, sought to quell the storm by giving 
his signature to the Petition of Right. But it was too 
late, rhe House, bent on the destruction ot' Bucking- 
Lam, pressed it s Remonstrance, and was hastily pro- 
rogued. 

But Buckingham soon ceased to be an object ot' 
anxiety to either the King or his Commons. While 
preparing to take charge of another expedition against 
France, he was killed at Portsmouth by one Folton, 
but whether for public or private ends is not dear. 
Folton had boon discharged from the public servioe. 

The King Can Do No Wrong. An explanation 
ought to be made of the persistency with which the 
House of Commons pursued Buckingham even at'ter 
the king had assumed the responsibility of all the 
offences charged against him. It was then, as it i> 
now, a settled principle ot' the English monarchy that 
" the king can do no wrong." In ease of wrong doing 
by the government, the king's ministers are held re- 
sponsible, and, aside from the removal or punishment 
of these, there is no way to coerce or punish the king 
himself except by revolution. 

The Purpose of Charles to Bole Alone. At its 

next session, in lio_'i\ the House summoned the collect- 
ors of the illegal taxes to its bar. They appeared but 
refused to answer, pleading the commands of the king. 
The speaker, being about to adjourn the House, in oho- 
dienee to a royal order, was held down in his chair and 
the doors kept looked against the messenger of the king, 

until the resolutions offered by Elliot were passed. 



CHARLES I. 185 

These resolutions denounced "as a capita] enemy of 
the kingdom any minister who .should seek to change 
the established religion or advise Ihe levying of taxes 
without consent of Parliament." The House then un- 
locked its doors and suffered the dissolution awaiting it. 

Ringing bells and blazing bonfires had signified the 
public joy when the king signed the Petition of Right, 
for if was then thought there would be an end of royal 
oppression; but joy was changed to sorrow when the 
king, on the occasion of the last dissolution, announced 
that there would be no more Parliaments, that hence- 
forth he should rule .-done. Eleven years of personal 
government, during which Parliament was not once; as- 
sembled, prove the earnestness of the royal threat, and 
form one of the gloomiest periods in the; history of Eng- 
land. Nine of the more prominent opponents of the 
king were thrown into the Tower, one of them, the 
heroic Eliot, to die within its walls. 

Laud, Strafford, and tho Two Courts. There 
were two ministers upon whom Charles chiefly relied 
to carry out his policy of absolute rule, William Laud, 
who had been placed at the head of the church, and 
Thomas Went worth, made Lord Strafford, once a hit- 
ter opponent, but qow a devoted supporter of the king. 
There were two courts that were the chief instruments 
of the royal tyranny, the High Commission and Star 
Chamber, the former having jurisdiction over offences 
against the church, and the latter, those against the king. 
Besides these there was the "Council of the North," 
having almost absolute authority in the northern coun- 
ties. 



186 CHARLES I. 

The lli^rli Commission and Puritan Emigration. 
Though not himself an avowed Catholio, Laud sought 

to make the Church of England Catholic in its Bpirit 
and practice. Through the court ot' High Commission 
he waged a pitiless warfare against Puritanism. Its 

ministers were everywhere driven from their livings, 
and its Laymen subjected to tortures that rivalled those 
of the most barbarous ages. Patents were secured and 
companies organized tor the settlement ot' New Eng- 
land. Eyes that looked Longingly towards the distant 
refuge of the Pilgrims yet tilled with tears, as, turning 
their backs upon scenes that were dear to them, the 
Puritans wended their way with unwilling feet to the 
place of embarkation. Hearts that swelled with grief 
as the shores o( "'dear old England" faded away from 
their sight, yet rose to a lofty purpose and a sublime 
resignation, as they laid home and country on the altar 
of their religious faith. They counted the peril, pov- 
erty, and hardship of their New England homos as 
naught beside the boon they sought and found, — •'' Free- 
dom to worship God.* 5 

The Puritan exodus, once begun, continued until the 
New England coast was dotted with settlements. Lord 
Say-and-Seal and Lord Brooke obtained a charter for 
the settlement of the territory now embraced in the State 
of Connecticut, Several colonies were established 
under this charter within a few years. Lord Baltimore 
secured a patent of the territory now known as Maryland. 
This settlement, originally founded as an asylum for 
persecuted Catholics, had a most liberal charter grant- 
ing perfect religious freedom to all sects. A colony 
numbering eight hundred souls under John Winthrop, 



CHARLES I. 187 

entered Massachusetts Bay, in 1030, and founded Boston. 
During the interval between the dissolution of the Par- 
liament of 1G29 and the assembling of that of 1040, 
twenty thousand Puritans had found homes in the New 
World. It is said that even Hampden and Cromwel] 
once embarked for America, but were stopped by a 
royal order. The former had purchased a tract of laud 
on Narraganset Bay. 

The Star Chamber and Illegal Taxation. But 
while the High Commission was doing its wicked work 
in the name of religion, the Star Chamber was crushing 
out every vestige of civil liberty. Its officers sur- 
passed even the lawyers of Henry VII. in the ingenuity 
with which they entrapped and mulcted the people. 
Laws and customs which had passed away with the feu- 
dal times in which they originated, but which had never 
been formally repealed, were brought to light and all 
offenders fined: Knighthood was forced on the gentry 
unless commuted with money. The forest laws were 
rigidly executed and poachers heavily lined. 

James had attempted to check the growth of London 
by a royal order defining its corporate limits. Every 
house since erected beyond the specified line was or- 
dered by Charles to be torn down unless its owner paid 
into the royal treasury a sum equal to three years' rent. 
Hundreds of the poor were made houseless by the exe- 
cution of this relentless order. Monopolies prevailed 
more extensively than under Elizabeth or James, rais- 
ing the necessaries of life to an exorbitant price. 

Ship Money and John Hampden. But the climax 
to the national endurance was reached when the king 
ordered the lovy of a tax called ship money. From 



188 CHABLES 1. 

the earliest times this had been a war tax levied on the 
maritime counties for the protection of the coast. 
Charles ordered the levy of ship money on all the peo- 
ple, inland as well as maritime, for general purposes, 
and in a time of peace. Eliot, the early champion of 
English liberty, was dead, but a worthy successor ap- 
peared in the person oi' John Hampden, a tanner of 
moderate means in the shire of Buckingham. Refus- 
ing to pay the tax assessed against him, he carried his 
case to the courts. Though defeated through royal in- 
tluenee, Hampden gained a groat moral victory, for the 
injustice oi' the king was made apparent to all the 
nation, and the public mind was educated to resistance. 

The Attempt to Force Episcopacy upon the Scots. 
The king had attempted to force Episcopacy upon the 
people of Soot land. A royal order enjoined the use 
oi' the Liturgy in all the Scotch churches. But those 
sturdy Presbyterians had imbibed the spirit as well as 
the faith oi' John Knox. A National Covenant, in- 
dustriously circulated, received the signatures of nine- 
tenths oi the Scotch people. The closing paragraph 
shows both the tenor of the Covenant, and the temper 
of the people. 

"We promise and swear, by the name oi' the Lord 
our Cod, to continue in the profession and obedience 
of the said religion, and that we shall defend the same, 
and resist all the contrary errors and corruptions, ac- 
cording io our vocation and the utmost oi' that power 
which God has put into OUT hands, all the days oi' out 
life." 

Charles at once hurried northward with all the 
troops at his command, to enforce obedience. But the 



CHARLES I. 189 

Scots quickly marshalled their clans under Leslie, a 
pupil of the great Gustavus, and, without waiting f<>r 
the attack of the Englishking, pushed boldly across the 
border and offered battle. The astonished kingfeigned 
concession, and retired to await the levy of a larger 
force. 

The Short Parliament. The crisis demanded the 
action of Parliament, and the king was forced to issue 
tin* usual writs for an election. The records of preced- 
ing Parliaments would answer for this. Instead <>f vot- 
ing men and money for a Scotch war, it demanded re- 
dress, and, after a stormy session of three weeks, wan 
angrily dissolved. "Thingsmust go worse before they 
ir<> better," said St. John, one of its members. They 

speedily went worse. 

A Great Council of Peers, assembled at York as u 
last expedient, accomplished uothing but delay. The 
advancing Scots had reached New Castle and were on 
the march for York. Laud was mobbed in London, 
and the High Commission broken up at St. Paul's. All 
England was brought to the verge of revolt, when 
Charles once more, and for the last, time, issued his 
summons for a meeting of Parliament. 

The Long Parliament. Parliament assembled on 
the 3d of November, 1640. Having enacted that its 
dissolution could only take place by its own consent, 
it continued, with expulsions and intermissions, through 
h period of twenty years, and is known in history as 
the Long Parliament. All the accumulated griev- 
ances of the people since the advent of the Stuarts 
Mere poured into the House of Commons, in the shape 
of complaints and petitions, requiring the labors of forty 



190 CHARLES I. 

committees for their examination. Then began the 
sharp work of reform. Patriots were released from 
prison ; the Star Chamber and High Commission 
abolished; the judgment against Hampden annulled; 
ship money and arbitrary taxation once more for- 
bidden, and royal officers impeached. Laud and Straf- 
ford, the two able but servile agents of the King, were 
thrown into the 'Power, whence they came only to lay 
their heads upon the block. 

The Attempt of Charles to Arrest the Five Members. 
The King looked bitterly but helplessly on, while the 
absolutism in which he had sought to entrench himself 
was roughly swept, away. Conscious that his throne 
was crumbling beneath him, he attempted by one 
master-stroke to crush out all opposition and re-estab- 
lish his lost authority. His blow was aimed directly 
at the House of Commons. With a company of sol- 
diers at his back, he appeared at the door of the Com- 
mons Chamber, and demanded the surrender of five 
of its members on a charge of high treason. Pym and 
Hampden were of the number. "I sec my birds have 
flown," said the king, after looking carefully over 
the silent assembly. With the expectation that "they 
would send the accused members to him," and a threat 
"to secure them for himself if they did not," the 
baffled king abruptly left the chamber. 

Civil War Inevitable. Tho crisis had come. The 
occasion was too solemn for business, and the House 
adjourned. The next day a royal proelamat ion branded 
the five members as traitors and ordered their arrest. 
London rose as one man for their defence. Its train- 
bands held the city and guarded the House of Com- 



CHARLES I. 191 

mons. They escorted the historical five back to their 
scats amidst the shouts of the excited people. Both 
parties began to prepare for the war that was now in- 
evitable. The king raised his standard at Nottingham, 
August 22d, 1642. Parliament ordered the enrollment 
and muster of the militia. 

Roundheads and Cavaliers. The great English 
people, farmers, traders, and artisans, mostly Puritans, 
with a sprinkling of peers, rallied around Parliament, 
and were called Roundheads, from the Puritan practice 
of wearing closely-cut hair. A majority of the nobles, 
gentry, and clergy, took sides with the king, and from 
their gallant bearin"; were called Cavaliers. 

The two great parties into which England resolved 
itself, the one democratic and the other aristocratic, 
the one aiming at progress and reform, and the other 
clinging to the traditions of the past, have continued 
to this day, under the names of Whig and Tory, Lib- 
eral and Conservative, to struggle for the mastery. 

Presbyterianism Made the National Religion. Par- 
liament secured the aid of the Scots, by signing the 
Covenant, and adopting the Presbyterian as the national 
religion. As an offset Charles sought help from tho 
Irish. In 1633, Strafford had been sent to Ireland, and 
for seven years had maintained in that country the iron 
despotism Charles struggled in vain to establish in Eng- 
gland. After Strafford's execution in 1641, and as a 
result of his severity, there broke out a wide-spread 
revolt of the Catholic Irish against the Protestant Eng- 
lish. It was located chiefly in Ulster, that had been 
settled, thirty years before, in the reign of James I , 



192 0HURLE8 I. 

l>v colonies of English Protestants. During its continu- 
ance, according to Clarendon, not Less than forty thousand 
people of English birth were slain. With this fresh in 
the public mind, the purpose of King Charles to bring 
an Irish army into England caused great excitement, 
even among his own adherents. Officers of all grades 
and in considerable numbers threw up their commissions, 

or went over to the other side. 

Edgehill, A.D. 1642. The first conflict, at Edge- 
bill, was favorable to the king. Successive disasters 
in various quarters darkened the prospects of the 
patriot cause. Not the least among these was the 
death, in a skirmish, of Hampden, the Washington of 
England. The great want oi' the patriot army was cav- 
alry. It was his strength in this arm that gave the 
king the advantage during tin 1 earlier stages of the war. 
A sturdy Puritan from the shire of Huntingdon, whose 
military genius we are soon to recognize, seeing the 
want, raised a regiment of horse, composed of men of 
like stamp with himself, and brought it into the field 
against the king. 

Naseby, A.l). 1645. In the battles iA' Marston 
Moor and Naseby, Cromwell at the head of his invinci- 
ble " Ironsides," scattered like chaff the horsemen of 
Prince Rupert, and then charging the close ranks of 
loyal infantry, put them to utter rout. The king 
conscious after the battle of Naseby that all was lost, 
rode into a camp of the Scots on the river Trent, and 
surrendered himself to Lord Leven, its commander. 

Straggle Between Presbyterians and Independents. 
The Puritans of England were divided into two prin- 
cipal sects, Independents and Presbyterians. The 



CHARLES I, 193 

former held that each individual church with its pastor 
should regulate its own affairs, independent of all 
others. The latter accepted the higher and ultimate 
authority of synods and bishops. The Independents 
were identical with the Separatists of the reign of 
Janus I., of -whom the refugees at Leyden and the 
Pilgrim Fathers formed important bodies. But their 
original idea of church independence widened towards 
the close of the Avar into that of the complete separa- 
tion of Church and State. The Presbyterian majority 
in Parliament proceeded to reorganize the Church of 
England on the Presbyterian plan. 

The 1 perils that environed civil liberty passed away 
with the surrender of the king to Lord Leven, but the 
religious intolerance that, remained, and to which the 
Puritan majority still clung, became almost as danger- 
ous to the State as the absolutism they had abolished. 
They had removed the civil, only to impose the relig- 
ious, yoke upon the necks of their brethren. 

Each party sought reconciliation and alliance with 
the king, as a means of success for itself; the Indepen- 
dents on the basis of religious toleration, the Presby- 
terians on the adoption of the Covenant. Charles 
rejected the oilers of both parties, expecting to bring 
tho ouo or tho other to his own terms. "I am not 
without hope," wrote he, " that I shall be able to draw 
either the Presbyterians or tho Independents to side 
with me for extirpating one another, so that I shall be 
really king again." "What will become of us," asked 
a Presbyterian, "now that the king has rejected our 
proposals ?" M What would have become of us," replied 



194 CHARLES I. 

an Independent, " had he accepted them ? " Parliament 
bargained with the Scots for the possession of Charles's 
person, paying £400,000, the amount due them. 

Struggle Between Parliament and the Army. The 
Presbyterians, now believing their victory assured, took 
a more decided stand. They established Presbyteries 
throughout the country, and voted to disband the old 
army which was Independent, and organize a now one 
with Presbyterians at the head. The quarrel between 
the religious sects in Parliament now changed to a 
struggle between Parliament and the army, ending, as 
we shall soon see, in the defeat oi' the former, and t he- 
establishment and continuance of military rule for a 
period of nearly twelve years. The army refused to 
disband, without an assurance o( religious toleration. 
A body of its troopers surrounded the Holmby House in 
which the king was detained, and took him into custody. 
Parliament charged Cromwell with inciting the act. 
While denying the charge, he put himself at the head of 
his old soldiers and was soon on the road to London. 
Royal intrigue and treachery towards both parties, — the 
flight of the king to the Isle of Wight, his unsuccessful 
effort to reach the continent, and his detention in Car- 
isbrook Castle, — a treaty with the Presbyterians, the 
principal terms oi which were the assent of the king to 
the Covenant, and his re-instatement on the throne, — 
the mustering o( the Cavaliers in various quarters, and 
the passage o[' the border by an army of Scots, to co- 
operate with the Royalists,— were events that transpired 
in rapid succession. 

The Army Becomes Supreme. At the head of an 
army only too willing to follow where Cromwell led, 



CHARLES I. 195 

with amazing rapidity he scattered the cavaliers inus- 
tering in the West, and then, turning northward, crush- 
ed the Scots at a blow and entered Edinburgh. Fresh 
concessions on the part of the king had given the latter 
au overwhelming majority in Parliament, and he was 
again seized by a body of troopers, and hurried away to 
Castle Hurst. A few weeks found Cromwell again iu 
London. Surrounding the Parliament building with 
his soldiers, he excluded all the Presbyterian members. 
The Independents remaining were called the "Rump 
Parliament." They assumed, as representatives of tho 
people, the supreme power of the State, and proceeded 
to the most radical legislation. 

The High Court of Justice. They organized a 
"High Court of Justice," composed of seventy princi- 
pal officers and members, for the trial of Charles Stuart 
on a charge of high treason. This Court met at West- 
minster on the 20th of January, 1649. Charles 
denied its legality and refused to plead. On the 27th, 
he was adjudged guilty and condemned to death. Tho 
death warrant was signed on the 29th, and on the 
30th the unfortunate king was beheaded in front of 
Whitehall. The scaffold on which he sulfercd was 
covered with black and surrounded w T ith soldiers. As 
the masked executioner, raising the head of the king 
streaming with blood, cried aloud, "This is the head 
of a traitor," a deep but audible groan burst from 
the assembled people, who tied horror-stricken from 
the awful scene. The people of England had never 
before witnessed the execution of their king, and 
Charles had borne himself, duriug the course of the 
trial, with such kingly dignity, and, after the fatal sen- 



1% OHABLBB T. 

to nee, with such patience and resignation, as to win 
their reverenoe and sympathy. The anniversary of his 
death was observed with religious servioes, as the" Day 
of King Charles the Martyr," from the restoration in 
1660, to the year L859, 

Three of Charles's children deserve notice ; Charles, 
Pnnce of Wales; flames, Duke of York; and Mary. 
The two former became Kings of England in turn. 
Mary married William, Prince of Nassau, and her son 
William became king after James. 

The Commonwealth, 1649 to 1660 11 years. 

The Commonwealth and its Perils. En less than a 

month after the execution oi' t he king, the Monarchy was 
formally abolished and a Republio, under the name o[' 
Commonwealth, erected in its stead. The Elouse o( 
Lords shared the fate oi' the throne, and the Rump (.'om- 
inous were left the sole and supreme authority. They 
created a Counoil of state, oomposed of forty-one ot' 
their own members, as the executive branoh of the 
government. Perils early thickened around the young 
Republic The violent death ot' the king at the hands 

ot" his subjects oaused an intense exeitemeut among the 

monarohs of lan-ope. The minister? ot' England were 
driven from some oi' the capitals and murdered in 
others. Holland made haste to recognize Prince 
Charles, then a refugee at the Hague, as King of Eng- 
land. 

'The proud Cavaliers, though beaten into silenee, 
to. ked with deadly hatred, as well as unspeakable dis- 
gust, upon the Puritan Republic, and they only waited 

for a favorable turn of events to attempt the restora* 



TIIK COMMONWEALTH. 197 

fcion of the Monarohy. But the first movements of a 
royalist outbreak were crushed by lh<^ iron hand of 
( Iromwell. A most dangerous spirit had crept into the 
army, which, if unchecked, would have !<•<! to the 
wildest excesses. The soldiers began to rise in mutiny 
against their offioers. Mingled severity and mercy, 
promptly applied by the same vigorous band, cured the 
discontenl thai was demoralizing the army. 

The royalists in Ireland raised the standard of the 
Stuarts and speedily look every town hut Dublin. 
Cromwell was dispatched with twelve thousand troops 
to reduce (hem to order. His campaign was short 
but terrible. He began with the capture of Drogheda 
mid the merciless slaughter of its garrison of three 
thousand men. Town after town opened its gates, in 
panic, at his command, or quickly fell before his as- 
saults. The memory of Ulster nerved every arm and 
steeled every heart in that dread army, for the work o( 
vengeance. Not a man taken with arms in his hands 
was spared. 

The proclamation of Prince Charles in Scotland,and 
the levy of an army for the invasion of England, called 
Cromwell backto London. With fifteen thousand men 
lie pushed rapidly across the border, and, in a hall le of 
an hour, annihilated the Scotch army at Dunhar and 
entered Edinburgh. The next year another army of 
Seois under Charles himself, finding the way open, 
pushed rapidly southward towards Loudon. 

Worcester, A. D. 1651. I>y forced marches, Crom- 
well placed his army directly in the path of Charles 
at Worcester. Cromwell characterized this battle aa 
his "crowning mercy." Scarcely a Scot escaped. 



108 THE COMMONWEALTH. 

Charles saved himself by flight; but left almost alone 
in the heart of England, with Cromwell's troopers occu- 
pying every road and scouring the country in search 
of the fugitive, his sit nation was perilous in the ex- 
treme Threadiug his way, in one disguise and an- 
other, through innumerable dangers, hiding by day 
and journeying by night, in two mouths he safely 
reached the southern coast and took passage on a collier 
for Prance. 

Parliament and the Army. Whatever may bo said 
in defence of the extreme courso of the Independents, 
both in Parliament and in the army, on the score of 
Belf-preservation, the Rump was but the fragment of a 
Parliament, ami its long continuance was felt by all 
parties to be impolitic. Charges o[' greed and cor- 
ruption against its members in appropriating the public 
spoils increased the odium attached to its name. Hate- 
ful from the outset to all denominations but its own, it 
was fast becoming hateful to that. Cromwell, impa- 
tient at the selfishness and uncertainty that charac- 
terized its action, urged a prompt "settlement of the 
nation, "and an early dissolution. Parliament, in re- 
taliation, resolved to disband the army. Failing in 
that, it sought to eclipse the splendor of its fame, by 
still more splendid achievements on the sea. Tho 
Dutch and English nations were maritime rivals, and 
their mutual jealousy was ready to break into open 
hostility on tin 1 slightest provocation. A statute, called 
the "Navigation Act," requiring all nations trading 
with England to bring their products to English ports 
in their own vessels, was aimed at the commerce of the 
Dutch, the common carriers of Europe. The English 



THE COMMONWEALTH. 199 

required the ships of other nations to lower their tlags 
in British waters. An English fleet under Blake met 
a Dutch fleet under Van Tromp in the Downs, Blake's 
signal of three guns for the customary salute to the 
English flag was answered by Van Tromp with a 
broadside. The fight that followed led to a declara- 
tion of war with Holland. The first conflict sent the 
Dutch under De Ruyter into port to relit; the second 
forced tin; English, under Blake, to seek the shelter of 
the Thames, while Van Tromp exultingly swept tho 
English Channel with a broom at his masthead; tho 
third seriously crippled Van Tromp, and, for a time, 
gave Blake undisputed possession of the sea. Before 
this last, victory of the English licet, then; was an un- 
derstanding that Parliament should soon dissolve! and 
the army disband ; after it, the former evinced a dispo- 
sition not, to dissolve at all. 

Tho Expulsion of tho Hump Parliament. In lf!53, 
a plan was made to call a new Parliament, in which all 
the members of the old Parliament should continue to 
hold scats, and also act as judges of the election of 
newmembers. Cromwell, who was a member of Par- 
liament, was opposed to this scheme. A mutual council 
at Whitehall adjourned for oiks day, with the under- 
standing that no action should be taken in the mean- 
time. At the time appointed for the second meeting, 
but few of the friends and none of tin! leaders of tho 
measure weie present. A messenger soon arrived at 
Whitehall with the announcement that tho bill was under 
discussion in Parliament and about to pass. Crom- 
well's hesitation vanished. Taking a till! of soldiers 
and posting them in tho lobby of the Parliament Cham- 



200 THE COMMONWEALTH. 

her, ho entered and took his accustomed scat. As he 
listened to the arguments of Vane who was speaking in 
behalf of the bill, he said to one who sat by his side, 
"1 am come to do what grieves me to (he heart." But 
ho continued to listen. "The time lias come," said ho, 
at length, to another. "Think well, it is dangerous 
work," was the reply. Still ho waited, but, just as the 
bill was evidently about to pass, he arose in his place 
and stepped out into ihc middle of the chamber. Pour- 
ing forth a torrent of abuse upon the members of the 
opposition, he stamped his foot as a signal for the sol- 
diers to enter. " Your hour has come," were his words 
as the soldiers tiled into the room, "the Lord hath done 
with you. It is not lit that you should sit here any 
longer. You should give place to better men. You 
are no Parliament." The Speaker was forced from his 
seat and the room quickly cleared by the soldiery. 
Lifting the man' from the table, "What," inquired he, 
"shall we do with this bauble? Take it away." 

Cromwell Made Lord Protector. The Council of 
State, dismissed with as little ceremony as Parliament, 
was followed by another council, and that by a con- 
vention, composed of Independents selected from lists 
furnished by the churches, and called the Little Parlia- 
ment, or Barebone's Parliament. It accomplished 
nothing, and voted its own dissolution after appointing 
still another council, composed of eight men with 
Cromwell at the head. This council summoned a Par- 
liament to represent England, Scotland, and Ireland, 
the right to vote for members being granted to all 
having a properly of two hundred pounds, except 
Cat holies and those who had fought for the king. Dur- 



THE COMMONWEALTH. 201 

ingthe interim of nine months, for the preservation of 
order, Cromwell was induced by the council to assume 
tin* government with the title of Lord Protector. 

The same body adopted an [nstrumenl carefully de- 
fining the powers of the Protector, and organizing a 
strictly constitutional government. The advice of this 
council was made necessary in the management of for- 
eign affairs, in questions of peace and war, and in the 
appointment of officers. Parliament was to meet once 
in three years, make the laws, subject for twenty days 
to the Protector's veto, and levy taxes. 

Cromwell Usurps the Government. In the writs 
for an election of members, it had been expressly 
stated that Parliament should not have power to alter 
the government as settled in a single person and a Par- 
liament. Its lirst step on assembling in 1054, was to 
take into consideration the organization of the govern- 
ment. The question of the Protector's veto power was 
debated for three days, when Cromwell, hairing the 
way to the Parliament, (Jliamber by a tile of soldiers, 
turned hack all who refused to sign an agreement not 
to alter the form of government. Three hundred signed 
and were allowed to enter. One hundred refused and 
were turned back. The signers adhered to their 
agreement, but fell back on the tactics of their prede- 
cessors, refusing to vote money for the army without 
a redress of grievances. This brought an angry dis- 
solution, and tho government relapsed into the ab- 
solutism from which the civil war had freed it. Taxes 
were levied and laws were made, on the sole authority 
of the Protector. The reaction in the public mind in 
favor of the monarchy was intense. Faith in the fun- 



202 THE COMMONWEALTH. 

damenta] principles of the Commonwealth faded away, 
us Its outward fabrio orumbled under the usurpations of 
Cromwell. Royalisl revolts broke out in various quar- 
ters, but they were easily crushed by the vigorous 
soldier who now had at his disposal all the powers of 
the State. England was divided into ten military 
distriots, and each placed under martial law. Scot- 
land and Ireland were reduced to order, but the se- 
verities practiced by English soldiers iii the latter 
country have Left to this day their hitter fruit of undy- 
ing hatred of the English rule. 

Prosperity Under Cromwell's Rule. In spite of the 
discontent and opposition of the royalists, theadminis- 
fcration of publio affairs under Cromwell was character- 
ized by wisdom, moderation, and suooess almost beyond 
precedent in the history of England. Cromwell reformed 
the law and made its administration uniform. "To 
hang a man for sixpence and pardon murder," as he ex- 
pressed it, did not accord with his idea of Justice. Though 
humane and tolerant in general, he was unrelenting to 
Catholics, and his campaign in Ireland was merciless. He 
allowed (he dews, who had been banished from (lie 

realminthe reign of Edward I., and who were still 
hated of all men, to return to England, and did his 

best, to protect them. To a new sect of Puritans, 
called Quakers, the objeol of derision to all others, ho 

extended the shield of his power. Cromwoll's orude 
but eil'ectivo statesmanship was best displayed in his 
management of foreign affairs. Bangs, in whose capi- 
tals at the beginning of the Commonwealth the lives of 

English ministers were not safe, earnestly solicited his 

alliance. A treaty favorable to England was made 



THE COMMON WKALTI I. 203 

with Holland. The Mediterranean was cleared of tho 
piiuirs that had Long made their haunts on the Afri- 
can shore, an<l the liberation of the white .slaves, held 
by tho Barbary States, secured. Jamaica and Dunkirk 
Were taken from Spain, and an entire /loot of merchant 
ships and galleon convoys was destroyed in the harbor 
of Santa Cruz. The Waldenses, ocoupying the valleys 
of Piedmont, among the Alps, were saved from mas- 
sacre l>y his determined intercession. In L656, Crom- 
well summoned another Parliament. It voted supplies, 
but it protested against the military despotism under 
which England continued. Cromwell at once withdrew 
the soldiers quartered in the ten military divisions. 
Although, on account of the opposition of tho army, 
ho refused the title of King, which this Parliament pro- 
posed to confer upon him, he accepted tho power to 
name his own successor. 

Cromwell's Death. Cromwell died September 3rd, 
1658, of an attack of ague, but his end was hastened by 

anxiety. His last years were full of I .rouble. There was 

a growing discontent among the people at the strictness 
of his government. He was surrounded by conspira- 
cies, and menaced with assassination. lie became a 
prey to perpetual fear, wearing armor under his cloth- 
ing, and arms about his person. His sleeping-room 
was constantly changed to Lessen the danger of mid- 
night attacks, and in ^<>in^ abroad, he returned by a 

different route to avoid an ambush of his enemies. 

Cromwell's Character and Motives. Of Cromwell's 
character and motives then; is a wide difference of 
opinion. Personally, he was one of oat lire's noblemen. 
Rising from the common walks of life to an estate and 



204 THE COMMONWEALTH. 

fame truly regal, ho lost noil her his simplicity nor hia 
piety. That he felt some of t ho promptings of ambi- 
tion, it is difficult to deny ; that ho possessed a great, 
earnest soul, chiefly animated by a desire to promote 
the welfare of his country, it is easy to believe. 
Had Cromwell been of royal blood, and Hie throne his 
birthright, his reigu would have been the pride and 
boast of Englishmen through all time. Cromwell has 
been compelled to bear tho odium of all the extreme 
measures that followed tho civil war. Both when ho 
was Captain General of tho Puritan army and Lord 
Protector of England, did his moderate counsels avail 
to defeat the wild schemes that always spring up iu 
times of revolution, and more than once did he endan- 
ger his iulluenco with his owu soldiers by his conserva- 
tism. Armies are rarely composed of men of such 
positive minds as the Puritan soldiers. Almost any 
oue of them could preach to his fellows what was called 
a sermon, and he had, too, his own ideas of govern- 
ment as well as of religion. Even a Cromwell could 
not always mould sueh stiff-necked material entirely to 
his owu will. It has been wisely said in regard to his 
policy with his army, that " to ordinarily govern, Crom- 
well was sometimes compelled to submit." The neces- 
sity of retaining the confidence and support of the 
soldiers, to assure his personal power and the ascendency 
of England as a nation, was imperative. lie had 
an intuitive sense of the nation's ills and the proper 
remedies to be applied. That his intuitions were, in 
the main, correct, finds its best proof in the marvelous 
success of his policy. 



THE COMMONWEALTH 205 

In his government, the personal and constitutional 
elements were strangely mingled. Ruling ordinarily 
in accordance with the laws, he did nol hesitate, on 

occasion, to override or change them. Wlien Parlia- 
ment failed to meet his expectations, he dismissed it, 
and, like Charles, ruled alone. There the similarity 
ends. Charles ruled alone to maintain the royal pre- 
rogative; Cromwell to give peace and prosperity to 
England. But there was, while Cromwell lived, a uni- 
versal feeling that the laws and the constitution were 
ever at the merey of an individual will. Such a sys- 
tem as Cromwell's, however favorable to order and 
progress under a wise administration, was inconsistent 
with a free constitution. Under a weak head, it would 
inevitably result in anarchy; under an ambitious one, 
relapse into a despotism. 

But Cromwell's enemies were unrelenting. It mat- 
tered little to cavalier and noble, who regarded him only 
as an upstart and an interloper, that his just and able rule 
commanded the respect of all Christendom ; nor to the 
royalist, who regarded him only as a low-born pretender 
and usurper, a tit mark for every assassin's dagger, that he 
made his country so great and powerful that the simple 
name of Englishman became a protecting shield to the 
humblest citizen that bore it, in any part of the civilized 
world. But whatever may be justly said of his wisdom 
and patriotism, it must be acknowledged that Cromwell 
was a usurper. The ruler who, even once, manifestly 
sets aside a settled constitution, or tramples under foot 
established law, is a usurper. This Cromwell did, at will. 
The people of England with much peril and bloodshed 



206 THE COMMONWEALTH. 

had just struggled through duo revolution, that their 
traditional liberties might be preserved to them; but 
when the despotism, however violent, of the Stuarts, 
merely gave place to the despotism, however mild, of 
Cromwell, freeaom was won only to be lost again. 
The Legitimate result ol' Cromwell's usurpation in 
1653, was the return of the Stuarts in L660, and the 
continuance of religious intolerance and arbitrary govern" 
ment for almost a generation. 

Kiehanl Cromwell. Cromwell named his son Rich- 
ard as his successor. The father was both soldier and 
statesman, the son was neither: and so, after a tew 
months of fruitless effort to oontrol a mutinous army 
and govern an almost rebellious people, Kiehanl re- 
signed the Protectorship and retired to private life. 

The Restoration. General Monk was in Scotland at 
the head of a well-appointed force, lie commenced 
at once his march towards London, where his arrival 
was awaited with indescribable anxiety. Though long 
silent as to his intentions, he was favorable \o the res- 
toration of the monarchy, and was in secret corres- 
pondence with Prince Charles, who was at Breda. 
The famous "Long Parliament," once more coming to- 
gether, issued writs for a new election, and voted its 
own dissolution, just twenty years from its first meet- 
inff. The new Parliament assembled on the 25th of 
April, 1660, and, agreeably to the wishes of all parties, 
invited Prince Charles to return to the home and throne 
of his father, lie landed at Dover on the 25th of 
May, and was crowned King o( England on the 29th. 
This is known iu history as " The Restoration. n 



THE COMMONWEALTH. 207 

The Last Muster of the Puritan Army. Ono of 
the most suggestive pictures presented to us in the 
annals of the English nut ion, is that of the old Puritan 
army, thirty thousand strong, drawn up at Blackheath, 
to witness the return of Charles. It might bo culled 
"The Downfall of Puritanism." Those grim and stal- 
wart men, who had been the arbiters of the fate of 
England for nearly twenty years, whose resistless 
charges had carried dismay into the ranks of the 
enemy at home and abroad, stood like lifeless statues, 
while the ringing bells and glad shouts of the people 
welcomed the returning Stuart to the throne of his 
ancestors. They had swept away the Throne, the 
House of Lords, and the Established Church, and had 
reorganized, or dismissed at will, the House of Com- 
mons, lint in tin; presence of the people, re-inspired 
with their old reverence for royalty, they were beaten 
without a battle. Sadly and thoughtfully, but without 
a murmur, they laid down their arms and quietly re- 
turned to their former homes, henceforth to be distin- 
guished from their neighbors only by greater industry 
and sobriety. Cromwell had been the representative 
of Puritanism, and his usurpation of power was regard- 
ed as a Puritan usurpation. When, therefore, he assum- 
ed all of royalty but the name, and ruled England 
through his army instead of his Parliament, Puritanism 
became a political force instead of a moral power, and 
its fall at the death of Cromwell was inevitable. 

Charles II., 1660 to L685 — 25 years. Stuart. 

The Circumstances under Which Charles Became 
King. Charles II. ascended the throne in 1660, but 



208 CHARLES II. 

English history dates the beginning of bis reign from 
the death of his father, in 1649. The circumstances 
under which he became an actual sovereign were aus- 
picious. Perhaps no English king was ever welcomed 
to the throne with so wild a delight as he. A few 
words as to the circumstances may be proper. 

That Cromwell was just in his rule and made Eng- 
land glorious, did not reconcile the people to the es- 
sential despotism he established. Even Republicans 
were unwilling to live under a government republican 
only in name. After the death of Cromwell, and 
during the administration of his son Richard, the gov- 
ernment was fast relapsing into anarchy. With Rich- 
ard's retirement, England was not only left without a 
head, but without a settled form of government. The 
monarchy had been abolished and the republic had 
proved a failure. What would follow none could tell; 
but it was plain to all, that the soldiers in arms were 
the sole arbiters of the fate of England. The one fate 
to be dreaded was a succession of irresponsible military 
rulers. Puritans and Churchmen, Republicans and 
Royalists, beheld the gulf that yawned before them, and, 
for a time, forgot their differences. For a peril that 
all could see but none could fathom, there was but one 
alternative, — the restoration of the monarchy and the 
return of the Stuarts. It was not then the fickleness 
of the English people, as is too often charged, but their 
conscious and narrow escape from nameless national 
woes, that caused such unbounded enthusiasm when 
Charles Stuart re-entered the capital of his ancestors. 

The Social Revolution. The extreme legislation 
of the Puritans had made their rule irksome to 



chakl.es ii. 209 

the people. Innocent amusements had been strictly 
prohibited, and piety, or its profession, had been made 
an essential qualification for office. With the restora- 
tion of the monarchy and a repeal of Puritan legisla- 
tion, there was an inevitable reaction. The dance 
around the May-pole on the village green was never so 
joyous as now, and Christmas festivities returned with 
more than their wonted hilarity. Had Charles pos- 
sessed but ordinary wisdom, could the experience of 
his father and his own early misfortunes have taught 
him the one lesson to study and respect the wishes of 
the people, his reign would have been peaceful and 
popular. But he broke every promise he had made, 
and disappointed every expectation of the people. 

Although they welcomed the removal of unnatural 
restraints, they were not prepared for the unbridled 
license that prevailed throughout the country after the 
restoration. Before long they were turning in disgust 
from the king they had welcomed so heartily, and wish- 
ing they had the great Oliver back again. Nothing 
more vividly illustrates the extent of this social revo- 
lution than the history of the stage. During the Puri- 
tan period, theatrical performances, however innocent, 
had been rigidly prohibited. With Charles returned 
the theatre, foul and revolting, without even a French 
refinement to its grossness. But the painted scenery 
and loose manner? of the new stage only reflected real 
life in fashionable circles. The king himself led the 
shameless revels of the royal court ; the court gave the 
standard of morality to the capital ; and thence the 
deadly contagion spread, infecting fashionable society 
in all parts of the kingdom. Religion became a by- 



210 C11AKLES II. 

word and morality a mockery. It is but just to say 
that the great mass of the English people remained un- 
affeoted by this incoming tide of vice. Although Pu- 
ritanism, as a political power, had fallen, and its very 
name had become a jest among the now dominant cav- 
aliers, the sturdy virtues and the deep religions spirit 
that were its very essence, had heen too deeply im- 
planted in the minds and hearts oi' the English people 
to be easily removed. They still remained to mould 
English character, and modify English institutions, and 
they are, to this day, a rich inheritance of the English 
people. 

Tho Convention Parliament. The Parliament that 

restored the monarchy is called the " Convention Par- 
liament." It early passed an "Act oi' Oblivion and 
Indemnity " extending a general pardon io all offenders, 
except certain oi' the Regicides. Of these, thirteen 
were executed and many imprisoned for life, although 
Charles had virtually promised to pardon all who vol- 
untarily came forward and surrendered themselves. 
Many tied to foreign parts, three oi' them, (idle, 
Whalley, ami Dixwell, finding refuge in America. 
This Aet restored to the Royalists the estates taken 
from them by the Commonwealth, except when the 
transfer had heen made by sale, but it gave them no 
redress for other losst>s. The dissatisfied cavaliers 
pronounced the " Aet " one of oblivion to the king's 
friends and indemnity to his enemies, for they had been 
mulcted without mercy under the Commonwealth, and 
many had heen forced to part with their estates to meet 
the demands oi' the government. This Parliament 
abolished the last relic of the Feudal System, the ton- 



CHARLES II. 211 

uro of lands by knight service, including the wardship 
of minors and the marriage of heiresses, that had been 
fruitful sources of income Iodic king, in place of which 
he received a life-grant of £1,200,000. 

The Restoration of the Episcopal Religion. The 
dissolution of this Parliament and a new election re- 
Bulted in the return of the " Cavalier Parliament " of 
L661. This body attempted by successive acts to re- 
establish Episcopacy as the national religion. "The 
Solemn League and Covenant" was ordered to 1m; burned 
by the public hangman. Charles himself became an 
Episcopalian, declaring that "Presbyterianism was no 
religion for a gentleman." The " Corporation Act " re- 
quired ;ill public officers to worship in accordance with 
the usages of the established church, and to deny the 
right of the subject to bear arms against the king. The 
"Ah of Uniformity" required all the clergy to adopt the 
prayer-book and assent to all its contents, on pain of 
expulsion. Two thousand Puritan clergymen were 
ejected from I licit- livings in one day, for non-compliance 
with this statute. 

Attempt to Force Episcopacy upon the Scots. To 

gain the aid of tin; Scotch Presbyterians, Prince 
Charles, on New Fear's Day, 1651, solemnly signed the 
Covenant at Scone, thus pledging himself to support 
tin; Presbyterian religion. But In; now not only turned 
Episcopalian himself but he resolved to force Episcopacy 
upon the Scots. The Earl of Lauderdale was sent to 
Scotland with unlimited powers to carry out the wishes 
of tin; king. Bishops were appointed, and soldiers 
posted at the various centres to compel attendance on 
the worship of the established church, and to collect 



SIS 0HARLE9 u. 

linos from non :it t iMuLmt s. An impotent rising of tho 
persecuted Coyenanters in the neighborhood of Edin- 
burgh became an excuse for the most barbarous Legisla- 
tion, and the most dreadful cruelty. The <r thnml>- 
Borew " and " boot " became oommoo instruments of tor- 
ture. From this time, 1662, to the Revolution, iu L688, 
the Scotch Coyenanters maintained their faith amidst 
persecutions :m«.l Bufferings, from which the mind re- 
coils W ith horror. 

The "Conventicle Act" forbade all Puritan assemblies 
for public worship. The faithful Covenanters, armed 
for self-defence, held seorel meetings, at midnight, in the 
depths of the woods. English soldiers Bometimes 
burst upon them with merciless slaughter. The Bea- 
girt prison on loss Rock, and the gloomy walls of Dun- 
barton Castle, witnessed many an awful death by slow 
anil cruel torture, many a sail ami lingering one in dark 
and dreary dungeons. Tho " Five Mile Aot *" forbade 
non-conforming clergymen to appear within five miles 

of any town 01 tho places ofthcir former worship, and 

excluded them from the work of instructing the young, 
dooming them to penury and even starvation and death. 
An Aot was passed for the suppression of Quakers, who 
were specially odious to tho Cavaliers, from their refusal 

to boar arms. English as woll as Scotch prisons were 
crowded with Puritan offenders. 

Foreign AtVairs. rho history of the foreign affairs of 
this reign is 'out a humiliating reoord of royal intrigue 
and treachery. Charles i* charged with involving 
tho country in war tor tho simple purpose of obtain- 
ing a vote of money tor its prosecution. The money 

onoe in his hands wont to tho support of shanudoss 



en mm.ks ii. 21.T 

favorites, while English ships were left to decay, and 
their orews remained unpaid. The first of these wars 
was wiih Elolland. H grew out of the rivalry of the 
Dutch ami English merohants seeking a monopoly of 

tlu> trade in ffold-dust and ivory on the coast of 

(juinea. An English fleet, sent to America during the 
first year of this war, 1664, compelled the surrender 
of all the Dutoh oolonies (<» England. The govern- 
ment of these oolonies was granted by the king i<> 
his brother, (lie Duke of York, from whom New York 

received its name. 

Tim Plague in London. A signal viotory, gained off 

the Suffolk const, near Lowestoft, caused little exulta- 
tion in London, for an enemy more dreaded than the 
Dutch w:is already in the suburbs of the great city. 
The worst fears were realized. That, dread pesti- 
lence, the Plague, was soon in every house, bring- 
ing death and consternation to the crowded population. 
In six months one hundred thousand persons died. 
Grass grew in streets that were onoe the busy marts 
of trade. Scarcely a sound was heard but the rumbling 
of the carts, and the cries <){' the attendants eohoing 
through the city and pieroing the death-haunted houses, 
" Bring out your dead, bring out your dead." 

The Great Fire of London. During the next year, 
1666, oalled by Dryden the "Year of Wonders," the 

greater pari of the city w;is laid in ashes by an extensive 

Gonflagration. In (he end the fire proved a blessing, 
Ibr it destroyed the filthy sections still infested by the 

Plague, and, in time, narrow lanes and wretched hovels 
gave place to wide, well-drained streets, and moreoom* 
modious dwellings. 



511 CHARLES IT, 

During the year following the tiro, tin 1 Dutch] every 
where victorious by reason o( the decay of the Eng- 
lish navy, sailed up the Thames and threatened London 
itself. The war was ended by the Peace of Breda, 
in 1668, Clarendon . who had been at the head of affairs 
of state, becoming unpopular on account of the war. n\ms 
compelled to resign to escape impeachment. He was 
succeeded by a Cabinet, or Cabal,* composed of five 
members, 

Charles a Pensioner of Louis of Franee. But that 
which brands this administration with the deepest in- 
famy, is a secret compact made with Louis \IY.. 
king of Prance, in L670, Louis ooveted the posses- 
sion of the Netherlands, and Bent an army to invade its 
territory. To preserve the balance of power thus en- 
dangered, England, Holland, and Sweden formed the 
"Triple Alliamv." While professing to enter heartily 
into this Alliamv. Charles was busily negotiating i\ 
Becret treaty with Louis. For an annual pension oi' 
£200,000, ho agreed to withdraw from the Alliance, 
assist Louis' Bcheme of conquest in the Netherlands, 
:unl adopt the Catholic religion. It was stipulated 
that ho should announce his change ot" religion ms soon 
:is it was prudent, and that Louis should lend him a 
French army in case of revolution, Charles didan- 
othor thing especially humiliating to the nation. Dun- 
kirk, that had been won from Spain by the valor of 
Cromwell, ami had become almost as essential to Eng- 
lish power, and quite as essential to English pride as 

• l'hi"i- WttTQ Clifford, ^rlt&CtoB, BlIOklngfaMIl, AshU'v.iuU 1 sui,UmM;iU\ tlu» 
iiuli;0.s »>(" \\ln>so u.mu's l«>wn l!u> woi.l 0:il>al, :i woi.l know a Ivi.nv. ftlgnlQ mjt 

I 0:iIm\u(. But to oorrapt wm tira Cabal ofCharlaa u., uu- \\>n,i Km otw 

•Inc* boon ipplted &0 olnjuos *(' politiOal (ru'k>tow». 



CHAHLBS if. 21 . r i 

Calais had been a oontury before, was sold i<> the 
Frenoh U i hit for £400,000, merely (<> pander to the 
pleasures of :i virion:! oourti A.greeably i«» the treaty 
made with Louis, Charles, in L672, began the war with 
Holland. On thesea,the Dutoh navygained several 
viotories over the oombined fleets of England and 
France. The refusal of Parliament i<> vote supplies, 
mikI the unpopularity of the war, oompelled Charles to 
make peace in two years. ITrauoe oontinued hostilities 
(ill L678, when, by the treaty of Nimeguen, she n >so 
to the first rank among the powers of Europe. Though 
gaining many advantages during the war, slid failed to 
oonquer ilio brave little Republic 

Declaration of Indulgence. Just before the begin- 
oing of 1 1 mi war, Charles had issued . - i Declaration of 
[ndulgenoe, establishing the prinoiple <>f religious !<>l- 
eration i<> all seots. This Declaration gave instant 
liberty (<» thousands of Puritans, who. Cor many years, 
had pined in English dungoons. Bunyan left the cell 
he had ocoupiod for twelve years in Bedford jail, and 
where he had oomposed that most wonderful allegory 
in the English tongue, Pilgrim's Progress. Twelve 
thousand Quakers :il<>n«' were set at liberty by this 
ediot. There was general distrust as <<> the motives of 
the king in issuing the Declaration <>f [ndulgenoe. Ct 
wms believed to be the initiative in m scheme i<> restore 
Catholics to office, and Catholioism l<> England. A 
persistent refusal of Parliament (<» vole supplies com- 
pelled the icing l<> withdraw it. 

The Test AH.. Parliament quickly followed n|> its 
advantage by passing the Test Ad, requiring all «>Hi- 
oers, rivil and military, i<» take the Oath of Supremaoy. 



216 CHARLES TT. 

This Oath contained a denial of the peculiar tenets of 
Catholicism, and an affirmation *>!' those of the estab- 
lished churoh. The numerous resignations that fol- 
lowed showed to what an extent Cat holies hail already 
been brought into office, and confirmed previous suspic- 
ions of the Catholic tendencies oi' the king. James, 
Duke oi' York, (lie brother of the king and Lord High 
Admiral, an acknowledged Catholic, was forced to 
retire from the navy. 

The Popish Plot. There were wide-spread fear and 
distrust. Whispers oi' Catholic plots tilled the air. 
At this moment, when the public mind was excited with 
apprehension and ready to credit any tale however 
wild, Titus Oates came OUt, in 1678, with pre- 
tended revelations oi' a plot to murder the king and 
all the Protestants in England. It was like a spark 
in a powder-magazine. All England was thrown into 
a phreusy of excitement. The train-bands patrolled 
the streets oi' London. The Catholics, to the number 
oi' thirty thousand, were ordered to leave the city. 
They were excluded by statute from Parliament, and, 
tor a century and a halt', were debarred from member- 
ship in either house. Fresh testimony of the coming 
of a Catholic army caused a fresh panic, and every 
Catholic in the kingdom was disarmed. Trials, con- 
victions, and executions followed each other with inde 
cent haste. The most eminent victim was the venera- 
ble Lord Stafford, who A\as guilty of no offence, ant 
was offered up to satisfy the maddened popular thirst 
for Catholic blood. 

A bill to deprive dames oi' the right of succession 
passed the House oi' Commons, but was defeated in the 



OTTATlLttfl II. 217 

House of Lords. The discovery of a Letter to Louis, 
written by the Earl of Danby, who had become Prime 
Minister after the fall of tho Cabal, soliciting money, 
und exposing the dependence of Charles on tho French 
king, gave an air of reality to the revelations of Gates, 
and fanned slill moro tho popular phrensy. Just at 
this moment it was discovered that the whole story of 
the "1*01)1811 Plot" was a pure fabrication. 

Tho Rye House Plot. A real Protestant plot chiefly 
to secure the exclusion of James from the succession, 
came to light, later in tho reign, implicating men of 
high rank, among whom were Lord Russell and Alger- 
non Sidney. A few reckless men of tho same party 
formed another scheme to assassinate tho king and his 
brother as they rodo past a place called the Rye 
House. The two plots were ingeniously made to ap- 
pear as one, by the lawyers of the Crown, sealing the 
doom of the high-born conspirators, who speedily per- 
ished on tho scaffold. 

Tho Habeas Corpus Act, A.l). 1070. In this reign the 
Habeas Corpus Act, the third great statute advancing 
constitutional liberty, was passed. It was specially 
designed to secure tho personal liberty of tho subject, 
forbidding his detention in prison without cause duly 
shown before a legal tribunal. Although tho principle 
established by this Act had been embodied in one of 
tho leading sections of the Great Charter, tho arbitrary 
wills of kings and tho ingenuity of ministers had 
hitherto rendered it entirely inoperative. Tho freedom 
of tho press was also secured in this reign. This was 
accomplished by a refusal of Parliament to renew the 
license law, by which a supervision of the press had 



218 OttAKLES (I. 

been maintained. It was in this reign that Milton, 
deprived of the office he had held under Cromwell, 
poor, old, and blind, achieved that greatest triumph 
of ok life, Paradise Lost. 

Tho Merry Monarch. With all tris faults, Charles 
was an easy, good-natured king, going quietly along 
iu the path of his pleasures, even when the most excit- 
ing events were occurring around him. His excessive 
good nature has given him in history, the title of 
" Merry Monarch." The various plots, real and pre- 
tended, had brought a reaction in the public mind in 
favor of the king. While the latter avoided an open 
or defiant disregard o( the laws, he went deliberately 
to work to make his government absolute, inaugurat- 
ing what has been termed the second Stuart tyranny. 
Tho Test Av-t excluding Catholics from office was 
quietly ignored, and dames was restored to his former 
position as Lord High Admiral. Although making no 
public avowal oi' his adoption o( the Catholic faith. 
Charles desired the ministrations of a Catholic priest 
in his dying moments. 

James 11., 1685 to 1689—4 yours. Stuart. 

Tho Second Stuart Tyranny. During the preceding 

reign, dames. Duke of York, had gained considerable 
credit as commander o( the navy. All efforts to 
exclude him from the throne on account of his pro- 
nounced devotion to the Papacy had failed, and now, 
at the death of (diaries without heirs. he assumed the 
crown without opposition, under the title of dames 11. 
Much was hoped from the supposed manliness o\' his 
character, and still more from the solemn avowal made 



TAMES ir. 210 

in the presence of his council, at its first meeting aftei 
the death of Charles, to support and defend the estab- 
lished ohurch, and execute the laws of the realm. But 
the high expectations that preceded the coronation 
unc only equaled by the disappointment that followed 
H. Enthusiasm soon gave place to gloom, and gloom 
Id horror. James was not a mere lover of ease and 
pleasure like Charles, but he soon showed that he was 
more indifferent to public sentiment, more defiant of 
the law, and more malignant towards men of other 
views. Within three days after his accession, and 
against the advice of his council, he levied customs ivith- 
out the consent of Parliament. The first elections wore 
carried by fraud and violence in (he interests of the 
king. Parliament, being subservient to Ins will, ap- 
proved (he levy, :ind voled the king a life income of 
.£2, ooo, ooo. lis action on the subject of religion was 
moulded to suit the royal pleasure. Though silent on 
(he subject in England, the laws against the Scotch 
Covenanters were made more severe and executed more 
rigorously than ever before. An ill-organized attempt 
of the Duke of Argyle to rouse (he clans to resistance 
quickly ended in the death of the Duke and the scat- 
tering of (he elans. 

The Rebellion of (lid Duke of Monmouth. An at- 
tempt, equally rash, on the part of the Duke of Mon- 
mouth,inthe west, having for its object the overthrow of 
James, and his own assumption of royal power, was 
even more disastrous in ils results. The royal army 
defeated the rebels at Sedgemoor, July <i, 1685. The 
polished hul cowardly Monmouth, when brought a 
prisoner into the presence of the angry king, pros- 



220 JAMES IT. 

crated himself at his feet, which he wet with his tears, 
while piteously begging for his life. He was quickly 
sent to the block, and his deluded followers were hunted 
down like wild beasts. These unfortunate attempts 
only strengthened the power of the king, for they 
enkindled a new feeling of loyalty in the hearts of the 
people. They furnished, too, a plausible excuse for 
a large increase of the army. The most severe 
measures were adopted against the rebels. 

The English Reign of Terror. A Circuit Court was 
organized in the rebellious counties, whose action was 
better suited to the darkest of the Dark Ages, than to 
the enlightenment of the seventeenth century. Chief 
Justice Jeffries presided. We know not from which 
the mind recoils with deepest horror, the merciless 
judgments of this fiend in human form against the inno- 
cent and the guilty, or his heartless levity in the midst of 
the sufferings he inflicted. We search, in vain, the pages 
of history for a name that has descended to a more 
infamous immortality than has that of Jeffries. His 
Court has been variously characterized, in history, as 
"Jeffries' Campaign," the "Bloody Assize," and the 
" English Reign of Terror." Its first victim was a wo 
man seventy years of age, Alice Lisle, widow of one 
of the members of the Ili^li Court of Justice. She 
was beheaded for giving food and lodging to a flying 
rebel. Another woman, Elizabeth Gaunt, was burned 
for the same offence, while others were scourged from 
town to town. One Captain Kirke, with a company of 
troopers as merciless as himself and ironically called 
"Kirke's Lambs, "had, before the appointment of Jeffries, 
been charged with the punishment of the rebels. It is 



JAMES II. 221 

said that they were accustomed, for entertainment at 
their carousals, to have their prisoners hung on lofty 
gibbets in front of their windows, and the drums beat, 
to furnish music to the dance of the quivering bodies. 
To an American there is no parallel to this, except in 
the cruelties of the savage who dances in glee around 
his tortured victim. As in the Wars of the Hoses, the 
heads and limbs of the dead were posted in public 
places to strike terror into the hearts of the inhabi- 
tants.* 

It will hardly be credited that the queen herself, and 
her maids of honor, made merchandise of freeborn 
English subjects, begging the lives of the condemned 
that they might sell them into slavery in the West 
Indies. Even the innocent and thoughtless girls who 
had presented to Monmouth an embroidered banner, as 
he entered their native town of Taunton, were only 
saved from a like fate by the payment of £2,000, to 
the maids of honor. Jeffries returned to London, 
enriched with the pardons he had sold, and with the 
boast on his lips, that "ho had hanged more for high 
treason than all the judges of England since William 

* Knight, in his most interesting work, gives the following graphic picture of 
the barbarities practiced by a Chief Justice of England, and sanctioned by 
its king, less than two hundred years ago. "The pitchy cauldron was 
constantly boiling in the Assize towns to preserve the heads and limbs lrom 
corruption that were to be distributed through the beautiful Western Country. 
As the leaves were dropping in that Autumn of 1685, the great oak of many a 
village green was decorated with a mangled quarter. On every tower of the 
Somersetshire churches a ghastly head looked down upon those who gathered 
together for the worship of the God of love. The directing post for the 
traveller was elevated into a gibbet. The laborer, returning home beneath the 
harvest-moon, hurried past the body suspended in its creaking gimmaces 
(chains). The eloquent historian of this reign of terror has attested from his 
own childish recollections that ' within the last forty years, peasants in some 
districts well knew the accursed spots and passed them unwillingly aftex 
sunset.'" 



_:_' JAMBS n. 

the Oonuueror," and was rewarded by his appreciating 
master with the Great Soal. 

attempt to Restore Catholieism to England. Flush- 
ed with suoooss in orushing the rebellion, James next 
movod boldly towards the goal be had in viow, tlio 
restoration of Catholioism to England. Qitholios wew 
put ;ii the head of the army, now uumboriug 20,000 
men, also of the uavy, the council, and the courts. 
Tln-v tilled the oivil offices and swarmed about the 
court. Monks of all ordors, drossed iu their poculiar 
garb, publicly paraded the streets of London, and 
Jesuits were allowed to establish a school in the Savoy, 
Parliament, hitherto (In* tool of the king, alarmed at his 
evident purpose, and :ii t ho boldness with which he 
moved to its execution, refused a vote of supplies, and 
w:is instanth prorogued. But the opposition <>i" Par- 
liamont and tho discontent of the people only increased 
the audacity of the king. lie constituted a spocial 
Court of Beven members with JofrYies at the liead, 
oommissionod to exercise complete control over mat- 
ters of religion, It was the "High Commission *' 
revivod. The Earl of Perth, one > ( t' the most Eealous 
supporters of the poli< j of James in matters of religion, 
w :is appointed to the government of Scotland, and 
the Earl of Tyrconnel, equally devotod to James 
and his polioy, to that of Ireland, A royal procla- 
mation, forbidding ministers to preach on disputed 
Bubjeots, was answered by stirring appeals from almost. 
every pulpit, while the public press teemed with 

the indignant protests oi' the people. James next 

Bought to place the great institutions of Learning under 
Catholic control, lie tried to force upon one of thu 



JAMBS 11. 2S8 

Oxford Colleges a Catholic Load. The Fellows had 
elected owe of then own aumbcr, deollning to aooept 
ilu' Qomiuoo of the king. James summoned them to 
his presonee. "I am your king, 1 will be obeyed," 
Baid he! "Go to your chapel this instant, and elect 
the Bishop] Lei those who refuse look to it, for thej 
shall feel the whole weighl of my hand 1 N 
The Se?en Bishops. All England was now In a fer- 

nu'iil : but flames, possessed with the insane ohstinaey 

of his race, and doaf to the entreaties of his Catholio 
frionds, and evon of the pope who counseled modera- 
tion, pressed swiftly forward to his doom, lie issued 
a " Declaration of indulgence," similar to thai of his 
brother, Charles II., abolishing all religious tests for 
office ami all penal laws againsl nou-eont'oi mists. 
This was ordered to he read to every congregation in 
the land. Only two hundred out of ten thousand 
clergymen oboyed. A protest signed by seven bishops 

was presented io the king. "It is :i standard of 
rebollion," said dames, as he sent the bishops to the 
Tower, They were speedily broughl before the King's 
Bonch on a charge oi' seditious libel. Being aoquitted 
by the jury aftor a day's trial, they were released 
amidst the wildest aeelamat ions oi' the people. That 
night, June 30th, 1688, was a memorable one in Lon- 
don. The whole oity Was illuminated in honor ot the 
seven bishops, honliros hla/.ed in every street, and 
rockets lit up the heavens. To over-awe the eity, 

Jsmes had established a camp at Hounslow, midway 
between Windsor and Whitehall. He was present with 
the army when the news o( (he acquittal arrived, hut 
lel't at once tor London. As he rode away he heard 



224 JAMES II. 

a great shouting behind him. " What is that ?" asked the 
startled king. " It is nothing but the soldiers who are 
glad that the bishops are acquitted," was the reply, 
"Do you call that nothing?" rejoined the king, now bit- 
terly conscious that he had lost the sympathy of the sob 
diers who were his only hope. Not daunted as yet, he 
dispatched the infected regiments to distant stations, 
replacing them with soldiers drawn chiefly from the 
garrisons of Scotland and Ireland. He assembled an 
army of forty thousand men, but he little dreamed that 
many of its officers were already in a league against 
him. Among these officers was Lord Churchill, after- 
wards, as Duke of Marlborough, to become the most 
famous general of his times. 

William of Orange Invited to Take the English 
Crown. The very day the bishops were acquitted, 
seven leading nobles sent a secret invitation to William, 
Prince of Orange, who had married James's eldest 
daughter, to come to England with an army and take the 
crown, assuring him of abundant support. William 
had seen King James become the pensioner of Louis 
of France, his most inveterate enemy. He had 
watched his persistent efforts to restore Catholicism 
to England. He had witnessed, with undisguised re- 
sentment, his evident purpose to transform Ireland into 
a Catholic state, to become (according to the French 
ambassador) an asylum for English Catholics, and a 
possible refuge for himself, — a scheme that threatened 
the integrity of the empire of which William's wife was 
the prospective heir. His counsels and his protests had 
been alike unheeded. Finally, when it was announced 
that the queen had given birth to a son, William 



JAMES II. 225 

shared the general belief, that it was a supposititious 
child, to be foisted upon England, in the interests of 
the Papacy. His purpose was formed, and the invita- 
tion of the English nobles accepted. James and Louis 
were in perfect accord. When William began to gather 
ships and soldiers for the English campaign, Louis 
schemed to detain him on the continent. 

By the greatest mistake of his life, as some historians 
term it, Louis hurled his forces against Germany in- 
stead of Holland, and the latter country being, for the 
present, safe, William was free to pursue his English 
campaign. With a fleet of five hundred ships, and an 
army of fourteen thousand men, he sailed from the 
Scheldt, and landed at Torbay, on the southern coast, 
the 5th of November, 1G88. His army took up its 
line of march for the interior, receiving at first but few 
additions. But soon powerful nobles began to arrive, 
and important towns to give in their adhesion. 

The Flight of James to France. James struggled 
with the energy of despair to meet the crisis. He sought 
to turn the current of public opinion by correcting 
abuses and making concessions, and even went franti- 
cally about touching for the king's evil, but all to no 
purpose. The people were wholly alienated from their 
king. The army of forty thousand which he had 
gathered at Salisbury; retreated, in panic, before the 
banners of Orange, and began to break up. Its 
officers went over to William, or retired entirely from 
the contest. James was utterly deserted. " God help 
me, for my own children have forsaken me," said the 
wretched king, when he learned that his daughter Anne 
had gone over to his enemies. Tossing the Great Seal 



226 JAMES II. 

into the Thames, ho quickly followed his wife and child 
in their tlight to France, without striking a Mow for his 
kingdom and crown. 

The Glorious Revolution Peacefully Accomplished. 
The House of Peers held a session, and requested 
William to call a convention of the people and to 
assume, in the meantime, the provisional government 
of England. The convention assembled in January, 
1689, and declared Mary, eldest daughter of James 
II., William's wife, to be the lawful heir to the vacant 
throne. But Mary declined to accopt royal honors that 
were not shared by her husband, and the convention 
then invited William and Marv to become joint sov- 
ereigns ot* England, with the actual administration of 
the government vested in the former. This proposition 
was accepted. Having signed a Declaration ot* Rights, 
re-allirming the ancient Liberties of the English people, 
William and Marv received their crowns, and "The 
Glorious Revolution" was accomplished. Well may 
a revolution be called glorious, that, without the shed- 
ding o\' a drop of blood, achieved results so grand. 
From that day to this we hear no more of punishment in 
England except for crime. Englishmen no longer pine 
in foul dungeons, or die in Grod's tree air at the cruel 
stake, for fidelity to religious convictions. Instru- 
ments of torture now exist only in Museums, as relies 
of a by-gone age. exciting the wondorof the beholder, 
that any age, and above all, any Christian ago, could 
have been so barbarous. The interval of two months 
between the flight oi' James and the coronation of the 
new sovereigns is known as the Interregnum. 



WILLIAM ANI> MAKV. 227 

William III., 1689 (o 1702 — 13 Years. Nassau. 

Mary II., 1689 to 161)4 — (5 Years. Stuart. 

The Grand Alliance. The elevation of William to 
the English throne was a serious blow to Louis, Bang 
oi' France. Besides enabling William to bring into 
the contest with Louis the fleets and armies of 
England, it largely increased his power and influence 
on the continent, lie became at once 1 ho acknowl- 
edged head of the opposition to French aggression. 
The revocation of the Edicl of Nantes, in 1685, had 
enabled William to bring about a coalition oi' the Protes- 
tant princes of Germany. The recent and wanton 
ravages of the French armies in the Palatinate now 
enabled him to bring into the alliance the Catholic 
princes also.* The conns of Spain and Austria, 
though reluctant to join an alliance of Protestant 
powers against a Catholic king, were forced to do 
so by considerations o\' self-interest, the Conner to 
make more secure the possession of the Spanish Nether- 
lands against the ambitious schemes of the French 
monarch, and the latter to win Protestant support 
for the claims of the House of Austria to the Spanish 
succession. France, without an ally in Europe, was 
thus compelled to face a coalition comprising England, 
Holland, Germany, and Spain. An English brigade 
was sent at once to the aid oi' the allies, but William 
himself was detained in England, by the unsettled 

* The "Treaty of Westphalia," terminating the "Thirty rears' War," In 1648, 
had lefl Germany, already divided by the Reformation, a loose confedera- 
tion of petty. Independent states a united in times of common danger by ;» 
sense of individual weakness, bul separated, in times >>i peaoe, by ilUfereuooi 
in religion 



228 WILLIAM AND MAliY. 

Condition of the government, and especially by the 
critical state of affairs in Ireland. 

Rebellion in Ireland. Tyrconnel had accomplished 
his mission in Ireland, bringing it completely under 
Catholic rule. The Irish people, seeing at last an 
opportunity of throwing oif the English yoke and 
recovering their lands, rose in arms. In the south, 
the panic-stricken English abandoned their homes 
and fled from the country. In the north, they 
gathered within the walls of Enniskillen and Lon- 
donderry. Backed by fifty thousand Irish soldiers, 
Tyrconnel boldly raised the standard of the Stuarts. 
James himself arrived in Ireland with a licet and 
army furnished by the French king. Londonderry sus- 
tained a siege of one hundred and live days, when an 
English ship broke through the boom stretched across 
the river Foyle, and brought relief to the starving 
inhabitants. The same day a sally was made by the 
garrison of Enniskillen and the besiegers beaten off. 

Battle Of the Boyne. Shortly after this, William 
landed at Carrickfergus with an ample force, and took 
up his line of march for Dublin. lie found the army 
of James strongly posted behind the river Boyne. 
Crossing this river on the 12th of July, 1690, in the 
face of the foe, William gained a complete victory, 
.lames embarked in haste for France. " Change kings 
with us and we will light you again," said an Irish officer 
to an Englishman who taunted him with the panic of the 
Boyne. William, after an unsuccessful attempt to 
capture Limerick, leaving the further prosecution of 
the war to his deputies, returned to England, and 
soon joined his allies on the continent, over whom 



WILLIAM AND MABY. 229 

the French armies had gained victory after victory. 
Peace of Ryswick. Flushed with success, Louis was 
tempted, after William left for Holland, in l»i!>'_\ to 
prepare an expedition for the invasion of England. 
But his fleet was completely overthrown, oil' Cape La 
Hogue, by a Dutch and English squadron, and all 
dauber of invasion passed away. The victory of La 
Hogue, and the presence of William on the conti- 
nent, inspired the allied armies with fresh courage. 
Although the war lingered for several years with vary- 
ing success, Louis, conscious, at last, that he had 
completely exhausted the resources of his people, ami, 
in the language of Fenelon, "had made France a vast 
hospital," consented, in 1697, to the unfavorable Treaty 
of Ryswick. lie surrendered all his conquests except 
Alsace, recognized William as king of England, and 
abandoned the cause of James II.' This war, under 
the name of "King William's War," had spread to tho 
English and French colonies in America. A feeble 
attempt on the part of the English to take Quebec, and 
murderous raids among the New England settlements 
by hostile Indians, were the only events worthy of 
mention. 

The Bill of Bights, A. D. 1G89. Although associated 
with William in the government, Mary had nothing 
to do with its administration. She died in 1694, 
universally esteemed for her many virtues. William 
survived her seven years. This reign was of great 
political importance to England. William's coming 
had been preceded by a declaration of his purpose to 
uphold the liberties of the country. During the first 
year he gave his signature to the Bill of Rights, 



830 WILLIAM AJSD MAliY. 

second, in impoi'jance, only to the Great Chartei 
itself. This Bill made standing armies in times of 
peace, and Levies of money without consent of Parlia- 
ment, unlawful; guaranteed the right o{' petition, the 
frequent assembling of Parliament, and freedom of 
debate; and forbade interference with the laws on the 
part of king. 

Other statutes established freedom of Ihe press and 
toleration for Protestant seets; secured to persona 
accused of crime the right oi' counsel ami a copy 
o\' the charges; ami to those condemned, protection 
from excessive lines and cruel and unusual punish- 
ments. By the Triennial lVdl.no Parliament could sit 
more than three years. The Act of Settlement 
excluded Catholics forever from the throne, making 
Anne, second daughter of James, the prospective 
heir, ami, at her death without heirs. Princess Sophia, 
who had married the Elector o[' Hanover. 

The Constitution of England. William's reign 
marks an era in constitutional government in England, 
not alone because it gave birth to now laws in the 
interests of liberty, hut because it gave vitality to 
laws that were old. Before William's time there were 
charters and statutes enough, could they have been 
executed, to have made the English people free; but 
neither was public sentiment so educated and expressed, 
nor the royal prerogative so limited and denned, as to 
make it impossible for a tyrant still to rule. During 
William's reign the rights of the people and the prerog- 
atives of the crown were clearly defined. Now sov- 
ereign and subject alike how before the majesty of tho 
law. 



WILLIAM AM) M.UiV. 2ol 

One principle was established in the reign of William 
that has made popular government in England secure, 
the principle that the ministers of the Crown must bo 
in harmony with the House of Commons. If in any 
important matter, or one in which the opposing parties 
are at issue, the House refuses by its vote to sustain the 
policy of the ministers, these ministers at onee retire, 
and their places are filled by men of the opposite party. 
The House of Commons can, therefore, dictate the 
policy to be pursued by the government, and is the 
chief ruling power. 

There is a peculiar and interesting fact in connection 
with the English Constitution. It is comprehended 
in no single enactment, nor in the enactments of any 
single reign. It is composed of all the great charters 
and statutes that have been enacted from time to time 
since the reign of John, with such customs and prece- 
dents as have the sanction of long usage. Although it 
lacks the individuality of our own Constitution, yet as 
the slow and steady growth of ages, as the product of 
the wisdom and patriotism of the best English minds, 
standing as it does tin 1 tests of time and an advancing 
civilization, it commands our reverence and our admira- 
tion. Indeed, our own Constitution is but a collection 
and epitome of the various charters of freedom that 
lie scattered all along the pathway of English history. 

The common phrase c< Mother Country " is significant, 
not alone as indicating the English origin oi' mot of our 
people, and our early colonial governments, but also 
the English origin of our liberties and our laws. Nearly 
all those great principles of government which we hold 
so dear were conceived in English hearts and wrought 



232 WILLIAM AND .MARY. 

out by English bauds. The inalienable rights of man, 
life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, dawned in 
Magna Charta long before they shone full-orbed in the 
Declaration of Independence. 

The Second Grand Alliance. The Peace of Ryswich 
had oeen hastened by the consciousness on the part of 
the principal actors, that the settlement of a new ques- 
tion of vital importance to the powers of Europe was 
soon to be forced upon them, the question of the succes- 
sion to the Spanish throne. The death of the present 
king, Charles II., was near at hand. With him would 
end the Austrian line of Bourbon princes, that had ruled 
over Spain for two hundred years. The leading 
powers, including France, determined on a partition 
of the Spanish empire at the death of Charles, agree- 
ing to recognize Archduke Charles of Austria, as heir 
presumptive to the Spanish throne. King Charles, 
indignant at the proposed partition, bequeathed his 
whole empire to Philip of Anjou, grandson of Louis 
XIV. Charles died in 1700, and Philip unopposed took 
possession of his inheritance. The exultant Louis, 
disregarding the treaty of partition of which he was 
one of the signers', accepted the will of Charles. 
Acting in the name of his grandson, he garrisoned 
the Spanish Netherlands with French troops, and 
returned a haughty refusal to William's demand for 
their withdrawal. England and Holland prepared for 
war. At this juncture, James II. died in France, and 
Louis publicly acknowledged the son of James as King 
of England, under the title of James 111. England 
had never been in greater peril from a foreign power 
since the days of the Armada, for the elevation of 



WILLIAM AND MARY. 2'6b 

Philip had placed the Spanish empire on the side of 
England's foes. "The Pyrenees exist no Longer " said 
Louis as his grandson went to take the Spanish crown. 
The soul of William rose with the emergency. Willi 
matchless skill and energy he brought to a successful 
issue the last great work of his life, the formation of 
a Grand Alliance embracing England, Holland, Ger- 
many, Sweden, and Denmark, pledged to oppose the 
ambitious schemes of the French monarch, and to sup- 
port the claims of Archduke Charles of Austria to 
the Spanish throne. 

Death and Character of William. But William did 
not live to prosecute the war he had planned. An 
accident, caused by the stumbling of his horse as he 
rode to Hampton Court, terminated fatally on the 
8th of March, 1702. He had long been slowly sink- 
ing under the ravages of disease. Although his face 
was marked with the lines of suffering, and his frail 
form bowed with care, his eagle eye and firmly com- 
pressed lips showed to the last the fiery soul within. 
Trained in the school of adversity (for the House of 
Orange had lain prostrate during his early youth), he 
had learned to be watchful of public events, and re- 
served in the expression of his opinions. l.lis family 
being restored to power just as he was entering man- 
hood, William brought to the public service wisdom 
and prudence beyond his years. His genius was best 
displayed in great emergencies. He was never so cool 
as in the midst of the conflict, and never so dangerous 
as after a defeat. Owing to his silent, unsocial habits, 
and his manifest partiality for his own countrymen, 
he was personally unpopular during his lifetime. But 



L'oi WILLIAM AM) MARY. 

his patience, constancy, and patriotism, and, above all, 
the wisdom of his far-seeing policy, securing to the 
English people prosperity at home, and an influence 
abroad unknown since the times oi' Cromwell, have 
male William of Orange an honored name in every 
English household. At William's death Anne was 
immediately proclaimed Queen of England, in accord- 
ance with the Art oi' Settlement. 

Anno, 1702 to 17U — 12 Years. Stuart. 

The War of the Spanish Succession. The death of 
William created no little consternation among the 
nations composing the " Grand Alliance." And conse- 
quently, the announcement, made from the throne, 

shortly alter Anne's accession, that the policy oi' 
William would he continued by the new government, 
was hailed with general delight. The Duke of Marl- 
borough and Prince Eugene were placed at the head 
of the allied armies. The war, that now arose, called in 
Europe, the " War o( the Spanish Succession," and in 
America, "Queen Anne's War," lasted till the year 
1713. During its progress four great victories were 
gained over the French at Blenheim, Ramillies, Oude- 
narde.and Maplaquet. France, humbled and exhausted, 
was compelled to sue for peace. By a treaty signed at 
Utrecht, in 171,'), while Philip was recognized as King 
of Spain, his possessions on the continent were divided 
among the allied powers. Louis consented to the 
formal cession oi' Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, and 
Gibraltar to England, recognized Anne as Queen of 
England, and again abandoned the cause of the Stuarts. 
This war had extended to the French and English 



ANNE. 235 

colonies in America, being marked by the renewal of 
Indian barbarities, especially in Massachusetts. Plans 
were iii progress for the sailing of a fleet against 
Quebeo, but they were brought to a sudden termina- 
tion by the announcement of peace. 

Marlborough. For several years, parly strife iii 
England had been growing more and more hitter, the 
Whigs favoring, and the Tories opposing, the war. Its 
long continuance, the frightful losses attending its 
fiercely contested battles, and the rapid increase of the 
national debt, had made it, towards the last, exceed- 
ingly unpopular. The Whig ministers were compelled 
to yield their places to Tories. Marl ho rough, who had 
allied himself with the Whigs, lost favor with the queen, 
who was Tory at heart, and, at the close of the war, 
was dismissed from the public service, with charges of 
peculation and mismanagement. His wife, the famous 
Duchess of Marlborough, who had exercised almost 
unbounded influence over the queen from the day of 
her accession, also fell into disfavor, and was dismissed 
from all the offices which she held about the royal person. 
Marlborough retired from England in disgust. This 
remarkable man deserves a moment's notice, lie was 
handsome in person and of polished address, skilled in 
diplomacy, and, confessedly, the first general of the age. 
It is said that he never lost a battle, nor failed in the 
attempt to take a town, during his whole military 
career. His serenity under all circumstances was 
something marvelous. Ho went as calmly into battle 
as. toa parade, passed unmoved amidst the most terrible 
scenes of carnage and suffering, exhibited no fear at the 
presence of danger, and showed no elation even in the 



286 ANNK. 

hour of victory, But there was another and Jt darkei 
.side to his charaoter. He waa guilty of habitual mean- 
ness and dishonesty, and bore exposure with little 
apparent shame. He had been a traitor to James, 
being among the tirst to join the League againsl him, and 
then a traitor io William, having enlisted warmly in a 
scheme for the restoration of the Stuarts, even after 
the aooessiou of William. His master passion was love 
of money. He stooped to the mosl unscrupulous 
methods in acquiring it, and managed, while in office, 
to amass an immense fortune. Marlborough stands a 
marked example of mingled greatness and Littleness. 
Constitutional Union of England and Scot Land. In 
the midst of the war, in the year 1707, England and 
Scotland were made, in all respects, one kingdom, their 
Parliaments being united, as their crowns had been a 
Little more than a century before. By the Act of Union, 
Scotland was to be placed on a perfect equality with 
England in matters of trade, the courts of Justice were 
to remain unchanged, and the ehnreh o\' Sootland was 
to be maintained, as already established by Law, Six- 
teen Sootch Peers were admitted to the House o( \joi\\*, 
and forty-five members to the House of Commons. 
Although this union was bitterly opposed by the Scotch 
people, it has contributed immensely to their pros- 
perity. Little fishing hamlets have grown into great 
oommeroiaJ cities, manufactures have sprung up and 
thrived, and to-day, in some departments o( industry, 
Sootland stands among the foremost nations. The 
reign of Anne was distinguished for its intellectual 
greatness, contesting with that o( Elizabeth the right 



ANNE. 231 

to be called the " Augustan Age." Ii is radiant wiih 
the genius of suoh men as Pope, Steele, Swift, aud 
Addison. 

Death of Good Queen Anno. Queen Anno died, in 
1714, of an attack of apoplexy. Her people kindly 
remembered her as "Good Queen Anno." She was 
not attractive in person, and possessed but moderate 
ability. It', like Elizabeth, she made an unwise choice 
iA' personal favorites, and weakly surrendered herself 
to their influence, like Elizabeth, too, she had the good 
sense to put able men at the head of the government. 
A ft or (ho Duchess of Marlborough (who was a whig) 
had lost favor with the queen, the latter fell under tho 
influence oi' Mrs. Masham, one of her attendants. By 
her husband, Prince George of Denmark, she had 
nineteen children, all of whom died in infancy, or early 
youth. Dontostio cares and sorrows make up the 
burden of her twelve years of rule. Prince George, 
though husband to the queen, had lilllo to do with the 
governmenl <>f England. 'That his abilities were 
limited may be gathered from the following sarcasm of 
the Merry Monarch: "1 have tried him drunk and 
sober, and can find nothing in him." In accordance 
with t In* " Act of Settlement," Anne was succeeded by 
George, Elector of Hanover, son of Sophia, who wan 
ii granddaughter of James I. 



CHAPTER X. 



House of Brunswick or Hanover. 



GEORGE I. 
GEORGE It. 
GEOKGK III. 



GEORGE IV. 
WILLIAM IV 
VICTORIA. 



George L, 1714 to 17-27 — 18 years. Brunswick. 

The Jacobites* George 1. was thoroughly German 

in his tastes and habits, .-is well as Mnh and speech. 

He manifested Little interest in English affairs, passing 

most of his time in his German kingdom, which 

Thackeray has pronounced as fortunate for the English 

people, since they were left the more free to confirm 

their newly acquired liberties. The adherents of the 

exiled Stuarts, called Jacobites, from Jacobus, Latin 

for James, had been very busy all through the reign of 

William, plotting his overthrow, usually in League with 

Louis \1\ . of France. Anno, being a Stuart and a 

Tory, was undisturbed by them, but during the Lattei 

part ot* her reign, there was a deep Laid plot to place 

on the throne, at her death, the sou ot" dames 11. This 

plot was dofeated through the vigilance ot* the Wbigs, 

ami its Leaders were forced into oxile, or brought to 

trial and punishment. The Jacobites were sufficiently 

active during the reign of George L.to keep the Lattei 

in a state of perpetual alarm, hut the decease of Louis, 

their most powerful friend, was a death blow to theii 

prospects. 

(MS) 



GBORGE T. 2.'J'.» 

Tho Pretender. In I7ir>, James Francis Stuart, 
on of James II., and «-.i M < ■< I the Pretender, caused bis 
standard to be raised id Scotland, under the Earl oi 
Mar. Nothing came of the attempt but sorrow and 
suffering !<> the deluded Highlanders who bad rallied (<> 
his support. Mar escaped (<> Prance in company with 
the Pretender. 

Two years later, Charles XII. of Sweden, having :i 
personal quarrel with Ki i i<j; George about the owner- 
ship of certain German territory, planned an invasion 
of Scotland in the interests of the Pretender, but the 
sudden death of the warlike Swede, while besieging a 
castle in Norway, brought this scheme to a sudden ter- 
mination. 

Another attempt was made in L719, when Spain, 
attempting to recover the territory of which she had 
been despoiled, provoked a quadruple alliance of 
England, France, Germany, and Holland, pledged to 
oppose her scheme of recovery. Her Heel, being 
almost annihilated l>y an English squadron, off the 
coast of Sicily, Rang Philip, in retaliation, planned an 
invasion of England and a rising of the Jacobites, in 
favor of the Pretender. The Spanish fleet was dis- 
persed by a storm, and this scheme, too, came to 
nought. 

The South Sea Scheme. But one thing of interest 
remains to l>e noticed, the South Sea Scheme. The 

expensive Wars of William had made necessary a 
national debt, amounting, at this time, to fifty-three 
million pound a. The offer of the South Sea ( Jompany 
to assume the entire debt, and lend money to the gov* 
eminent, at the low rate of four per cent., besides 



840 GKOUOK I, 

pay Ulg a bonus of seven million pounds, in consider* 
tiou of the solo right of trade to the South Seas, was 
accepted bv the government, The plana of the com* 
pany required an immense outlay. Not having suffix 
cient capital tor sogigantio an enterprise, the company 
issued an indefinite amount of South Sea stock, 
promising Large dividends to all who would invest. 
The well-known annual return o( the galleons of Spain 
laden with the gold, silver, ami precious Btones o( 
South America, and the glowing aooounts o( voyagers 
to the distant Pacifio, ooncerning the tropical wealth o( 
its myriad islands, led to the most extravagant notions 
of the value of the South Sea trade. 

In addition to this, the South Sea Company had the 
virtual endorsement o( the government. Its stock 
sold readily, and the price wont up until shares worth 
a hundred pounds sold for a thousand. The excite- 
ment became intense and increased to a phrensj . All 
dav long, eager throngs crowded around the oounters 
of the company. The hard-earned savings of the poor, 
as woll as the superfluous wealth of the rich, were 
swallowed up in the all-devouring Maelstrom. Other 
companies* sprang up tor absurd, and even impossible 
objects, finding eager victims, so prevalent was the 
insane spirit of speculation. It is estimated that their 
entire stock would amount to five hundred million 

• rtioio wow oompantoa ■• t^> iisti tor wrooka on the iiisii ooMt, N ■■ to extrtol 
mivi't from load," ■• to Import usoa from Spain," •• tor a wheel fbr porpotaal 

motion.* 1 "lor mi iiiuhMinkiiiit lli.it sli.-ill in .Ino tmio l>o 1 ovo.ilo.!." Xo., \o. 

aii tiioso oompaniaa found grilling violins, a\a Ifthaj oompaniea Just dm* 

tionoil n\ 01 o not :i sufllouMitlv palpabltl luuloso,r.o On I hQ l'i ov.iilmi; ni:in\.i lor 

apeoalation, aoomp&ny waa annoonood " for the Invention o( melting dowi 

saw dust mnl olui>ti, and Tlflfltlaj llii'in Into olOU tlo:il boaida H illionl Onokt or 
knot*." 



(i,(ii:cr i. SMI 

pounds sterling, twice the value, al thai time, of all 
the land in England. The South Sea Company, l>.v 
mi A<i of Parliament, secured Mm suppression of all 
its unlicensed rivals. Public confidence in speculative 
nchcmos was shaken. South Sea stook shared in the 
ifoni r.il distrust, and came into the market in increasing 
quantities; the price wont down j a panic onsued ; and 
the bubble burst, causing wide-spread ruin and dismay. 
Tho Septennial AH. A. single constitutional change 
was made during this reign. Tho Triennial A.ct had 
limited tho sitting <>f Parliament to throe years, but 
the frequent occurrence of elections kept tho country 
in .1 state of constant turmoil, and the Septennial A<1 
was passed, lengthening the sitting to seven yoars t 
George I. was stricken with apoplexy while travelling 
in Hanover, and died in his carriage He left one son, 
who succeeded him wiih the title George II. 

George EI., 1727 fco L760 :t:i Fears. Brunswick. 

Robert Walpole. Robert Walpole was Prime Min- 
ister <»f England during the last six years of the reign 
of George [., and be continued, during the i\v*i, fifteen 
years of tho reign of George II., to guide the affairs 
of State. II<- first oame into prominence at the 
lime of the South Sen excitement, having, from 
the first, warned his countrymen against the delusive 
"dream." But it was in the midst of the dismay that 
followed the awaking, that Walpole displayed bis 
matchless skill as a financier, suggesting plans to 
equalize the losses, and so to alleviate the general dis- 
tress. The ohiof merits of his policy were its firm 
adherenoe to pence, and the encouragement it gave 



242 GEORGE IT. 

to industry. Its grand results were an unprece- 
dented development of the national resources, and the 
re-establishment of the public credit. The English 
people, being no longer distracted by questions of 
religion and liberty at home, or war abroad, directed 
their energies, as never before, to the arts of peace. A 
new interest was awakened in commerce, and English 
merchant ships increased in every sea. A new impulse 
was given to manufactures, and great busy towns grew 
up, as if by magic. But "Walpolo's administration, 
though favorable to the production of material wealth, 
was destructive to public virtue. He retained power 
only through the indiscriminate practice of bribery. 
Honors, offices, titles, and gold, were unsparingly dis- 
tributed to carry borough elections, and control parlia- 
mentary votes. "Every man has his price," was 
Walpole's pernicious estimate of human virtue, and the 
key-note to his policy. 

War with Spain. The Treaty of Utrecht, in 1713, 
limited the commerce of England with Spanish America 
to slaves and the use of a single ship. The treaty re- 
striction had never been enforced by the Spanish 
officials, and a lucrative trade had gradually grown up. 
Sometime after Philip had mounted the Spanish throne, 
the two countries of France and Spain had made a secret 
treaty, afterwards called the "Family Compact," France 
engaging to restore Gibraltar to Spain, and Spain 
engaging to break up English trade with South Amer- 
ica. Almost every ship that arrived from South Amer- 
ican waters had some tale to tell of search and outrage 
by Spanish cruisers, raising the war feeling, among the 
English people, to fever height. Walpole long strug- 



OTCOTWVE TT. 248 

gled to maintain peace, but, in 1730, lie yielded to the 
pressure and declared war with Spain. Hearing the 
bells that proclaimed the popular joy, Walpole is said, 
with a wise foresight, to have remarked, " They may 
ring their bells now ; before long they will be wring- 
ing the:: hands." The war was unfortunate, and, as 
often happens, the man who was least responsible was 
most geuerally blamed. Walpole had to bear the 
odium of the now unpopular war. But its area soon 
widened. 

War of the Austrian Succession. At the death of 
Charles VI., Emperor of Germany, his daughter Maria 
Theresa inherited his dominions. The Elector of Bavaria 
also claimed the German crown. France and Spain sup- 
ported the cause of the Elector ; England and Holland 
that of Maria Theresa. This war began in 1744, and 
was called, in Europe, the "War of the Austrian Suc- 
cession," in America, " King George's War." Its feeble 
conduct on the part of England, charged to the apathy 
of the great "peace minister," made him so unpopular, 
that his majority in the House of Commons dwindled 
to a single vote, forcing him to resign in 1742. King 
George joined the army on the continent, and won, at 
its head, the battle of Dettingen. The war continued 
till 1748, when, by the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, the 
claims of Maria Theresa were allowed by all the 
powers. 

The only event of importance that occurred in 
America during this war, was the capture of Louis- 
burg, on Cape Breton Island, called from its great 
strength the Gibraltar of Ajnerica. It was taken by 
an expedition that sailed from Boston, in 1745, undei 



?44 OFOROF. TT. 

the command of Sir William Pcpporcll. Much to the 
disappointment of the colonists, the Treaty of Aix-la- 
Chapelle compelled the restoration ofLouisburg to the 
French, 

The Young Pretender. While the war was in 
[irogress, and the very year that Louisburg was taken, 
mother and a last attempt was made by the Stuarts to 
recover the English crown. A grandson of James 11.. 
Charles Edward Stuart, called the young Pretender, 
landed on the western eoast of Scotland with hut 
seven followers. The Highland elans were easily 
roused at the eall of a Smart, and the Pretender, gain- 
ing a victory at Preston Tans over the troops sent to 
oppose him, soon found himself at the head oi' six 
thousand men, and marched rapidly on London, caus- 
ing, for a time, the greatest consternation. English 
soldiers were hastily withdrawn from the continent, 
and an ample force soon stood between the Preten- 
der and the capital. Scarcely a Jacobite had joined 
him, inn were there any signs of a Jacobite rising, 
and the disappointed Prince, after reaching Derby, 
was forced by the Highland chiefs to retreat. 

Cnlloden. lie was overtaken, in 17 It!, at Culloden 
Moor, near Inverness, and his army was defeated with 
great slaughter. The Pretender escaped from the battle- 
field, only to wander a hunted fugitive amidst the wilds 
of Scotland. His romantic adventures and hair- 
breadth escapes remind us oi' the perilous wanderings 
>f Charles 11. after the battle o( Worcester. With 
English dragoons patrolling all the roads, and guard- 
ing every pass, and English cruisers closely watching 
the Scottish coast, it seemed impossible for the unfor- 



QEOltUU II. 245 

tunate prince to escape. For five months he found 
shelter among the rough but devoted Highlanders. 
At one time he was thrown upon the mercy of a band 
of robbers, living with them in ;i cave near tho const. 
Bui neither Highlander nor robber was tempted to 
betray him by the reward of thirty thousand pounds, 
which the king had placed upon his head. 

The Last of <lie Stuarts. With tho departure; of tho 
Pretender from the shores of Sco1 land, the Si uarts dis- 
appear forever from the pages of English history. 
Forced from the soil of France by the Treaty of Aix- 
la-Chapelle, the Pretender went to Rome, where ho 
eked out a wretched existence, and died, in 1788, a 
miserable death. His younger brother Henry, Cardi- 
nal of York, the last of the Stuarts, died at Rome, 
some twenty years later. A monument, erected by 
Canova, in St. Peter's at Rome, in 181(5, bears three 
empty titles, James III., Charles III., and Henry IX. 

The French and Indian War. The French owned 
Canada and Louisiana, and laid claim to the Ohio and 
Mississippi valleys, by virtue of early explorations by 
Jesuit missionaries. The English occupied the Atlantic 
sea-board from New Brunswick to Florida, and claimed 
the country westward to the Pacific, basing their titlo 
on the discoveries of tho Cabots. Both parties there- 
lore claimed the great Mississippi basin, stretching 
from llic Alleghanies to the Rocky Mountains. In 1749, 
George II. had granted a charter to a company to 
settle the Ohio valley. 

To forestall and prevent its occupation by the Eng- 
lish, tho French planned a chain of forts, running along 
the line of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, purposing 



846 GEOKGE 11. 

thus to connect their settlements in Canada and Louisi- 
ana. They had already built three of these torts. 
beginning with Presque Isle, on Lake Erie, whoa the 
Governor of Virginia, in L753, Beat George Washington 
on a mission of inspection and remonstrance. IK- 
reported the French as thin in their purpose to occupy 
the disputed territory. Washington was sent, the next 
year, with a military force to protect the laborers of the 
Ohio Company, who were engaged in building a tort 
at the junction of the Alleghany and Monongahela 
rivers. Before his arrival, this fort was captured and 
completed by the French, who named it Fort l>u 
Quesne. Washington, attacked by overwhelming num- 
bers, was forced to retreat beyond the Alloghanies. 
France and Fnuland, realizing that the time had now 
come for the struggle for dominion in America, hur- 
ried forces to their respective colonics; and thus 
began, in L754, the French and Indian War, 

The Fivo Important Points. The French, at the 
outset . occupied live important points, against which 
the efforts of the English were mainly directed. Fort 
Du Quesne, standing at the head- waters of the Ohio, 
commanded the Ohio Valley ; Fort Niagara controlled 
the fur trade and the navigation ot' the Great Lakes; 
Forts Ticonderoga and Crown Point stood right in the 
great natural highway between Canada and New York; 
Quebec was the key to the possession o[ Canada, while 
Louisburg controlled the fisheries, and the gulf and 
river of St. Lawrence. The earlier eontliets were 
favorable to the French, but the appointment o( 
William Pitt at the head oi the English ministry 
caused a more vigorous prosecution o( the war, and 



GEORGE II. 247 

tho tide soon turned in favor of English anus. Louis- 
burg :iiitl Du Quesne surrendered in 1 7 r> <s , the latter 
being named Fort Pitt, in honor of the great minister. 
Ticonderoga, Niagara, and Quebec, yielded in 1759. 

The Battle of Quebec. The capture of Quebec 
decided the war. It was taken by tho English under 
Wolfe, who scaled the heights of Abraham, and defeated 
the French under Montcalm, on the plains above. Wolfe 
and Monlealin both fell mortally wounded, while light- 
ing bravely at the head of their forces, and each died 
willingly, the one rejoicing in his country's success, 
and the oilier unwilling to survive his country's defeat. 
As Wolfe lay on the ground, with his life blood fast 
ebbing away, an officer near him exclaimed, "They 
run, they run I " Wolfe raised himself on his elbow, 
.(ml asked" Who run ? " "The enemy, the enemy," was 
the reply. "God be praised, I die happy" murmured 
the noble patriot, as his great soul passed away from 
earth. Montcalm, when conscious that his wound 
was mortal, asked the surgeon how long he could sur- 
vive. " Perhaps a day, perhaps less," was tho reply. 
"So much the better," said tho suffering hero," I shall 
not live to see the surrender of Quebec." On an 
obelisk, erected in the gardens of the government 
house at Quebec, the name of Wolfe was placed upon 
one side, and that of Montcalm upon the other, — a noble 
tribute of a nation, grateful to a patriot son, and 
generous to a manly foe. 

A Proud Year in English Warfare. The year 1759 
is one of the proudest in the annals of English war- 
fare. The battle of Quebec, fought on tho 13th of 
September, settled the question of dominion in America* 



IMS GEORGE ll. 

Five days after this battle, Quebec opened its gates u 
the English army, and the following year, all Canada 
came under English rule. In the old world — where 
tho war was known as the *• Seven Years' 'War"- -the 
French had planned two campaigns, the one tor the 
seizure o( Hanover, and the other for the invasion oi 
England itself. The victory of Minden, won August 
1st, chiefly through the valor of the six English regi- 
ments in the army of Ferdinand of Brunswick, forced 
the French back to the Rhine, and Hanover was safe. 

Tho French fleet, designed to aid in the invasion of 
England, was blockaded in the harbor of Brest by 
Admiral llawko. Tho latter being driven by a storm 
tVom tho coast, tho French ventured out, but his 
Budden return forced them to take shelter among tho 
rooks and shoals in Quiberon Bay, Tho pilot on board 
llawko's flag-ship remonstrated against tho la; tor's 
decision to attack tho French on so dangerous a ooast, 
and in tho midst of a gale. "Yon have uono your duty 
in this remonstrance," said the brave commander, " Now 
la\ mo alongside tho French Admiral." And there, 
amid rocks and shoals, in tho darkness and tempest, tho 
brave mariners of England won imperishable honor. 
Tho French fleet was destroyed or dispersed, and Eng- 
land Was saved from all danger of invasion. 

Tho Struggle tor Dominion in India. Hardly less 
important was tho struggle between France and Eng- 
land tor dominion in India. In L600, during tho reign 
ol' Elizabeth, a company was chartered for purposes <■( 
trado with tho East Indios. In L662, Bombay was 
acquired by tho marriage of Charles 11. with Catherine 
of Braganza. By successive Acts oi Parliament, tho 



Sl> I ;,M U .<,<, ..,. . I. 



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UKOUUK II 



249 



India ' ompany was posted vviih the sole govern- 
ni'iii of tho Engli !i East [ndia \><> < ions. It. or- 
ganized and maintained its own array, and establi ih< 'I 
it own courts of ju iticc. H i principal station i, at the 
time "I" Hi'- accession <<f George II., were Madras, 
Bombay, and Calcutta. The French, also, bad trading 
itations on the coa t, the principal one being ni Pondi- 
cherry. During tho " War of tho An trian Succession/' 
the Fr< nch governor conceived the idea of expelling Hi': 
Engli li altogether from the Indian peninsula. Allying 
In in iclf wiih Mm: native princes, tho authority of Prance 

Tin established throughout most of the Carnatic. 
Only a single native prince held out against the French, 
;iu(| he was closely besieged in lii i last stronghold. 
In iv.;l, liobert Clive, a poor clerk in tho employ 
of the English Company, having obtained a com- 

,ii, raised a small force of two hundred Engli h, 
and three hundred native soldiers, and suddenly sur- 
pri ed Arcot, the capital of the Carnatic. With the aid 
Hi' the Mahrattas, warlike tribes inhabiting the moun- 
tains, Clive defeated the French and their native :illi<:H 
in battle after battle, and established the supremacy 
of the English. 
Plaggey. in 17.VI, Surajah Dowlah, the Viceroy of 

■ il, fell suddenly upon Calcutta, making captive 

atire population. One hundred and forty-six 
pn oners were crowded into ;i dungeon belonging to 
tin: fort, called the Black Hole of Calcutta, eighteen 
feet l"ii^ by fourteen wide, and having only two 
small windows. All but twenty-three were <i<:nl 
when the door was opened the next morning. When 
the m-wrt reached Madras, Clive raised a force of 



■2^0 til own K 11. 

one thousand Englishmen and two thousand natives, and 
pushed rapidly northward towards the Vicoroj 's capital. 
He was met at Plassey, in 17,">7, by the Viceroy him- 
self, :K the head of sixty thousand savage natives, 
tiflecu thousand of whom wore cavalry. But this 
great host was completely overthrown by tho bravo 
little army under Clive, and tho rich and populous 
district of Bengal was added to British India. The 
war against tho French was prosoeutod with vigor, 
and, in six mouths after tho accession of George 111., 
tho English dominion in [ndia was firmlj established. 

George 111., L760 to L820 -60 rears. Brunswick. 

The Peace of Paris. The first two kings of the 
Souse o( Hanover were German to tin* last in taste 
and feeling, and there was Little in oommon betwocn 
them and their English subjects. But George the 
Third used to boast that "ho A\as Briton born," ami it 
was then something to be proud of, tor England, un- 
der the guidance of tho "Great Commoner," had takon 
tho foremost rank among tho nations of Europe. In 
L763, tho " Seven Years' War 1 ' was formally terminated 
by tho " Peace oi' Paris." Few treaties have made such 
sweeping changes as this. Franco relinquished to Groat 
Britain not only the disputed territory in America, l>nt 
nil Canada besides. She surrendered to Spain the 
island and the town oi' Now Orleans, and all her terri- 
tory west of the Mississippi. Of her vast possessions 
in North America, she retained, as fishing stations, only 
two small islands, St. Pierre and Miquelon, lying south 
of Newfoundland, J$y the same treaty, Spain gave 
Florida to England, in exchange for Havana and tho 



OEOBOE ur. 251 

Philippine I land , which England bad taken from \n;t 
oaring Hi- 

Can m of the Ameriean Revolution. 

The Repressive Policy of England. The r''' li,; .'/ f 'f 
the mother country toward* bei American coloniei 
bad always been a repressive one. Both commerce 
and manufacturi i had been discouraged by laws eon- 
fining their trade to English ports, and to the use of 
Engli I) bips. This policy was inspired, in part, \>y a 
purpose to protect home industries, and; in part, 
'!< ire to keep the colonies in a state of dependence. 

Searefa Warrants. With the increase of colonial 
wealth, came chem< colonial revenue. Duties 

were laid on certain imports, and, as a result, the 
colonists, without calling in question the propriety 
of such duties, resorted to an organized y tern of 
smuggling. To correct this evil, captain i of Engli ih 
cruisers were empowered to search, and, in case ot 
.-,11 ipicion, to seize, every merchant ship entering a 
colonial port; and, on the land, officer , provided 
with "search warrants," were authorized to break 
into tores, and even private houses, if suspected 
of containing Is, violating a principle 

Ion;/ dear lo the English people, that " Every man's 
bouse is bis castle." 

The Stamp Act. No direct tax had ever been laid 
on America Such a tax Ij:"I bc< ted as early 

tin the mini iry of Walpole, but a con cioui aess of in 
injustice had hitherto deterred English ministers from 
attempting to levy it. In 1 7';.";, during the ministry of 
Lord Grenville, a tax was laid on stamps, whose use on 



252 GLOKOE III. 

papers, pamphlets, and legal documents, was made obli- 
gatory by Act of Parliament. This direct tax was held 
to be justifiable, on the ground of the expenses incurred 
by the home government in prosecuting the French and 
Indian war. But this was a mere pretext, for the Eng- 
lish ministry could nut have been ignorant that the 
colonics had borne more than their share of the burdens 
of the war. The spirit of opposition in the colonies was 
so intense and universal, that the Stamp Act was re- 
pealed the next year ; but the repeal was coupled with 
an affirmation of the right of Parliament " to bind the 
colonies in all cases whatsoever." 

Boston Port Bill. After resorting to various devices 
to secure submission on the part of the colonies, even 
sending regiments of soldiers, as a menace to the people 
of Boston, the British government, in 1773, laid a trivial 
tax of three pence per pound on tea. But this too failed, 
for with the colonics, it was not a question of money, 
but of principle. They had no voice in the delibera- 
tions of the body that taxed them. "Taxation with- 
out representation is tyranny," was the principle on 
which they took their stand. New York and Phila- 
delphia sent the unbroken chests of tea back to Eng- 
land. In Charleston, they were stored in damp cellars, 
until their contents became worthless. At Boston, the 
cargoes of three ships were poured into the bay by 
men disguised as Mohawks. In retaliation, the port of 
Boston was closed to commerce, and the charter of 
Massachusetts annulled, by Act of Parliament. 

Battle of Lexington, April 19th, 1775. From 
this moment, the colonies were a unit in the pur- 
pose to oppose the oppressions of the English govern- 



GEOKdE 111. 253 

ment. The public mind was rapidly educated to 
resistance by such dauntless patriots as John Hancock, 
John Adams, Samuel Adams, Patrick Henry, and 
Benjamin Franklin. Delegates from twelve colonics 
met a1 Philadelphia in September, 1774, forming what 
is known as the First Continental Congress. While 
expressing their loyalty to the mother country, they 
boldly asserted their rights as colonies. Their petitions 
and protests were slighted by Parliament and spurned 
by the king. The breach rapidly widened, and war 
became inevitable. General Gage, commander of the 
British troops in Boston, having learned that military 
stores were being collected at Concord for the use of a 
colonial army, sent a detachment of eight hundred 
soldiers to destroy them. But its march had been 
preceded by a swift messenger, the gallant Paul Keverc, 
who gave notice of the coming of the British. The 
whole country on the line of inarch was aroused, 
and " minute men " began to muster. A company was 
drawn up on the village green at Lexington when the 
British force came up. Refusing to disperse at the 
order of the commanding officer, seven men fell dead at 
the lirst volley of the British soldiers. The latter then 
marched on to Concord, and succeeded in destroying 
some of the stores, when the gathering of "minute men" 
from all quarters compelled them to retreat. But 
retreat was more dangerous than battle. All along its 
line, rocks, and trees, and walls, concealed the undisci- 
plined but now determined colonists, whose unerring 
bullets constantly thinned the British ranks. Re- 
inforcements alone saved the latter from annihilation. 



254 GEORGE III. 

The battle <>*' Lexington, fought on the 19th of 
April, 1775, was the signal to all the colonies that the. 
war had actually begun. Volunteers came pouring in 
from all parts of .New England. In a lew days after 
this battle sixteen thousand "minute men" won 1 
gathered in the environs of Boston. 

The Declaration of Independence. The Second 
Continental Congress assembled at Philadelphia in 
May, 177f>. Measures were taken to raise and main- 
tain an army, o\' which George Washington was elected 
Commander-in-chief. But the must important work 
of this Congress was the passage, on the 4th of July, 
177i), of a Declaration of Independence. Hitherto, 
the colonies had petitioned, respectfully but earnestly, 
for a redress of grievances ; now, as a sovereign people, 
they boldly declared, and prepared to maintain, com- 
plete independence. 

It was an unequal contest. A few weak ami 
scattered colonies were opposed to the most powerful 
empire in the world. In the field, an untaught militia, 
scantily supplied with munitions of war, and often 
destitute of food and clothing, were pitted against well- 
trained and well-furnished veterans. But inspired by 
the example ol' Washington, their noble commander, 
the patriot soldiers endured privations without com- 
plaint, suffered defeat without despair, and patiently 
learned the art ot war from its practice. 

The earlier events oi' the war were unfavorable to 
the Americans. Their gallant stand at Bunker Hill, 
and the successful siege of Boston, while giving 
them confidence in themselves, weighed little on the 
issue, compared with the defeats at Long Island and 



GEORGE III. 255 

White Plains, and the forced retreat of Washington 
through New Jersey and across the Delaware The 
prospect that had Looked so gloomy during the year 
1776, brightened a little, at its close, with a brilliant 
success at Trenton, and with another, in the early 
part of 1777, at Prineeton. The crisis of the war was 
reached in the latter part of the year 1777. 

Surrender of Burgoyuo anil Alliance with France. 
The British had planned two campaigns, which, if suc- 
cessful, they confidently believed, would bring the 
colonies to terms. One of these had for its object tho 
capture of Philadelphia, then the colonial capital, and 
the other, the isolation of New England from the rest 
of the country. The first, though successful, proved 
to be of no advantage to the British. Washington, 
beaten at Brandywine and Germantown, was compelled 
to yield the capital to Howe. Congress removed to 
York. The second was disastrous to the British. 
General Burgoyne had organized, in Canada, a grand 
expedition composed of t^n thousand well-armed and 
well-trained men. lie moved up Lake Champlain and 
along the line of the Hudson, capturing forts and driv- 
ing the Americans before him. Checked at Bemis's 
Heights, he was surrounded and beaten at Saratoga, 
and compelled, on the 17th of October, to surrender 
his whole force to General Gates. Tli6 effect of this 
signal success was marked both at home and abroad. 
It was, in fact, the turning point in the war. The 
Americans took new courage. Foreign nations were 
inspired with increased respect for a people struggling 
so bravely against such fearful odds. Franco had 
watched the course of Uie contest with keenest inter* 



256 GEORGE III. 

est. Though animated by the bitterest hatred of 
England, and anxious for the success of the colonies, 
she had been unwilling to ally herself with an uncer- 
tain cause. After Saratoga, she hastened to acknowl- 
edge the independence of the colonies, and to make 
with them a treaty of alliance. She sent a fleet and 
an army, at once, to their assistance. Spain and Hol- 
land acknowledged their independence a little later. 

William Pitt, Earl of Chatham. Not less marked 
was the effect of the surrender of Burgoyne on the 
English people. Public sentiment grew strong against 
the war. Some of the ablest English statesmen urged 
an immediate peace. A "motion was made in Parlia- 
ment by the Duke of Richmond, to acknowledge the 
independence of America and withdraw British soldiers 
from American soil. This brought William Pitt, Earl 
of Chatham, once more and for the last time, into 
the House of Lords. Leaning on his crutches, with 
his limbs swathed in bandages, pale and emaciated, but 
with faculties apparently undimmed, the great orator 
denounced, with the impassioned eloquence of which he 
was still master, the proposition to yield up one of the 
fairest possessions of the British empire, as he said, at 
the dictation of France. Attempting to speak again in 
reply to the Duke, he fell back in a swoon, and was 
borne away to die. Pitt had opposed the scheme of 
taxation from the outset, and he had resisted, step by 
step, the policy of coercion which had been adopted. 
Illness had ±brced him to retire from office in 1768, 
but he had not ceased, in his retirement, to utter his 
solemn warnings to the government and to the nation. 
On occasions of importance, though ill, he had been 



GEOKGE III. 257 

brought into the House of Lords, in which his Earldom 
entitled him to a seat, to participate in its deliberations. 
Pit 4 was the friend of America because he was the 
friend of justice, but he was an Englishman and a 
patriot, and his soul revolted at the thought of the 
dismemberment of his country. 

Yorktown, A. D. 1781. It was owing to the obstinacy 
of Kim? George, that the motion of Richmond did not 
prevail. Though the war lingered for several years, 
chiefly in the South, the final issue was never doubt- 
ful after the success at Saratoga. Its closing scene was 
laid at Yorktown, in Virginia. Lord Cornwallis, 
hemmed in, on one side, by an ample force of French 
and Americans under Washington, and, on the other, 
by a French fleet under Count de Grasse, was com- 
pelled, on the 19th of October, 1781, to surrender. 

Peace of Paris. Though virtually euded in America, 
the war still continued among the European combat- 
ants. England gained repeated victories on the sea. 
The most interesting event was the heroic defence of 
Gibraltar by General Elliot, against the combined 
forces and fleets of France and Spain, through a siege 
of three years and seven months. September 3rd, 
1783, articles of peace were formally signed at Paris, 
and the United States of America took her place, 
unchallenged, in the great family of nations. 

Causes of the French Revolution. 

The Despotic Rule of Louis XIV. Louis XIV. was 
a superb monarch. His court was as magnificent and his 
rule as absolute as those of an Eastern despot. Louis 
uttered no idle boast when he once said, " I am the 



258 GEORGE in. 

State," for a J the powers of the State were centered in 
his single person. The French nobles, though slaves 
to the king, were tyrants to their tenants, grinding 
them with taxation, from which they were themselves 
almost wholly exempt. Louis' system of government 
was a Feudalism as oppressive to the poor as that of 
the Middle Ages. With him passed away much of the 
regal splendor that had dazzled, and the personal 
power that had awed, the people of France. But the 
worst features of his system, its despotism, extor- 
tion, and extravagance, remained under his successor. 

The Corrupt Rule of Louis XT. Louis XV. sur- 
passed all his predecessors in the vileness of his private 
life, and in his wanton waste of the public money. 
Evidences of discontent among the suffering people 
became more and more apparent. The king plainly 
foresaw a coming storm, but he took no means to avert 
its calamities from his people, or from his successors 
on the throne. He was only solicitous for his own 
safety. " Things will last my day," was his monstrous 
speech on one occasion. "After us the deluge," replied 
the royal favorite, Madame Pompadour, and the reck- 
less pair only plunged the deeper into every species of 
excess. 

The Inefficient Rule of Louis XYI. Louis XVI. 
was a mild and pious king, but he had neither the 
ability, nor the vigor, to cope with the perils that 
gathered darkly around the throne which he inherited. 

The French Sceptics. The popular discontent had 
been intensified by a class of literary men, who had 
flourished in the preceding reign, among whom Vol- 
taire and Rosseau had stood foremost. With the 



GEORGE III. 259 

fiery eloquence peculiar to French genius, they had 
disseminated the most extreme views on subjects that 
profoundly agitated the public mind, such as class 
privileges, unequal taxation, and popular rights, kin- 
dling in the excitable bosoms of the French people a 
burning love of liberty, and a bitter hatred of oppression. 
But they also taught infidelity to religion, and contempt 
for established order, striking at the very foundations 
of society itself. The seed sown by French sceptics, 
at this period, took deep root, and ripened, before 
long, into bitter fruit. 

The Influence of the American Revolution. One 
other influence, operating on the French mind, remains 
to be mentioned, and one of no light import at this 
period. The French soldiers had returned from 
America, at the close of the revolutionary war, full of 
the republican spirit, which they readily communicated 
to their friends and neighbors, making them familiar 
with the idea of revolution, and especially, with the 
merits of a democratic form of government. 

The States-General. Louis XVI., conscious that the 
public credit was gone, and that a crisis in the finances 
of the government was at hand, in 1789 summoned the 
States-General, a body composed of nobles, clergy and 
commons, that met only in times of national peril. It9 
last session was in 1614, in the time of Richelieu. 
But the meeting of the States-General only precipitated 
the storm which it was designed to avert. The com 
mons, or Third Estate, as they were called, ignoring 
nobles and clergy, declared themselves to be the 
supreme authority of the State. 



260 GEO&GE Hi. 

The Revolution Sweeps away Church ami State. 
This action of the commons was revolution, whose 
bloodless beginning in Legislative halls was but the 

DO O 

tirst breath of the coming storm, that was soon to rock. 
to their very base, all the institutions of Church and 
State, and, finally, to involve them in complete and 
indiscriminate ruin. 

A Paris mob destroyed the Bastile, the hated prison, 
in whose dungeons had been silenced, tor so many 
generations, the murmurs of the people. The blame- 
less king and his accomplished queen, Maria Antoinette, 
subjected to one indignity after another, at last perished 
under the guillotine. The Monarchy was overthrown, 
and a Republic was erected in its stead. The Christian 
Sabbath was abolished, and every tenth day was made 
a day of secular rest. A solemn vote decreed that 
there was no God, and Reason was enthroned as the 
object of supreme worship. Over the entrance io 
every cemetery in the land was written, "Death is an 
eternal sleep." 

The Keigu of Terror. One political party followed 
another in power, each more violent than the other, 
until, under the National Convention, with Robespierre 
;it the head, the climax was reached in the inaugura- 
tion of a "Reign of Terror." The guillotine was 
glutted with victims, and the best blood of France 
tlowed like water. It is computed that a million per* 
sons perished during this mad carnival of blood. The 
excesses of the Republic at home, and its efforts to 
arouse the revolutionary spirit abroad, soon raised 
against it a eoalition of the most powerful nations of 
Europe. 



GEORGE III. 201 

Napoleon Bonaparte. The stirring events of the 
times brought to the surface, about the year 1795, the 
most extraordinary man of modern times. Napoleon 
Bonaparte was born on the island of Corsica, a French 
dependency in the Mediterranean. He was educated 
at a military school in Brienne, a town in France, show- 
ing, even in youth, the germs of that genius which after- 
wards made him so distinguished. His skill and cour- 
age at the siege of Toulon, and his bold defence of the 
Directory, the successor to the National Convention, 
against the National Guards, in 1795, placed him, at 
once, at the head of the armies of the Republic. He 
returned from his first campaign in Italy, the idol of the 
French people. His second in Egypt and Syria, in 
1797, designed to establish a French empire, and 
undermine that of England, in the East, was a complete 
failure. Napoleon won the battle of the Pyramids, but 
was repulsed at Acre, while his fleet was annihilated 
by Nelson, in the battle of the Nile. 

Leaving his generals to complete the hopeless cam- 
paign, Napoleon returned to Franco to overthrow 
the Directory, and to become First Consul in 1799, 
Consul for Life in 1802, and Emperor in 1804. 
From the time of his election as First Consul in 1799, 
to his fall in 1814, the history of France, and almost 
of Europe, is the history of Napoleon. Coalition after 
coalition of the powers of Europe sprang into existence, 
only to be dissolved by his diplomacy, or crushed by his 
power. These coalitions were no longer formed for the 
destruction of the Republic, or the restoration of the 
Monarchy, for Napoleon had overthrown the one, and 
restored the other, but they were formed against Napo- 



161 in. 

re terror in the 
hearts of the kings, than had even the dread spectre of 

Admiral Nelson. England alone, of all the po 
of Europe, remained, through Nap whole career, 

undaunted and unconquered, England a) sorted 

at times, by all her allies, stood between N • 
aiul universal conquest, Said the groat soldier, when, 
in 1802, he had gathered one hundred 
trained soldiers at Boulogne, and a vast Beet of trans- 
- to land them on the shores of England, "Let 
ns be masters of the Channel for sis hours, and we are 
masters of the world.* 1 But the fleet, designed to 

ising of the transports, was swept from the 
Channel, and blockaded in the harbor of Cadii bj 
gallant Nelson, and tho invasion was not even at- 
tempted. 

French and Spanish tloots, venturing forth from 
Cadi.-, were met and annihilated, off Capo Trafalgar, in 
It was on this occasion that Kelson gave tho 
famous order, "England expects every man to do his 
dun." — -the grandest sentiment ever signaled from 
the mast-'.., -ad of a flag-ship, on the eve o\ battle. It 
was Nelson's last order. He was struck, in the very 
heat of the contest, by a musket hall, while standing 
on the deck of his ship, tho Victory, Covering his 
face with his handkerchief, that the crewmight not see 
who was wounded, he was carried below, and died jnst 
after victory was assured. 

The Struggle on the Spanish Peninsula. In 1 8 s . 
began the struggle between England and France for 
the mastery in Spain, the army o\' the former being 



0BOBOB m. 2C..T 

nndor the command of Arthur Wollosley, distinguished 
for In services in Indh, that of ili<- latter, under Soult, 
one "i the most illustrious of Napoleon's marshals. 
Victory long wavered in the balance, but finally, in the 
early part of the year L81 1, the scale turned In favor 
of E&nglii li arms, and ili«' last French soldier was driven 
across the Pyrenees into France. For his success in 
Spain, especially at Talavera, in L809, Wellesley w:ih 
rewarded with the title of Duke of Wellington. In 
other parts of the continent, Napoleon had generally 
been victorious, carrying the eagles of France into 
almost every capital. [Jim and Austerlitz, Jena and 
Wagram, wen- witnosses of his amazing success. 

The Invasion of Knssia. In L812, when at the 
summit of his power, Napoleon undertook the inva- 
sion of Russia. This has been regarded as the turning 
point in his career. Alier advancing for a period of 
three months, during which several bloody battles were 
fought, lie reached Moscow, the ancient capital of the 
empire, only to see it speedily laid in ashes. The rich 
and beautiful oity was sacrificed, thai the invader might 
find no shelter. The food in all the country around had 
been destroyed, and winter was fast approaching. 
Al'ier waiting more than a month, in the vain hope of 
peace, there was no alternative for Napoleon l>nt 
retreat. The Btory is a sad one. Thousands of brave 
men died at the hands of the wild Cossacks, clouds of 
whom hovered around the devoted army, day and 
night, ever on the alert to attack the helpless masses, 
or cut off straggling soldiers. Thousands more per- 
ished with eold, hunger, and exhaustion, amid the 
drifting snows which cover that vast region of pine hikI 



264 GEORGE III. 

plain. Nearly half a million gallant and stalwart men 
began the proud march that was to add Russia to the 
list of Napoleon's conquests. Only thirty thousand 
wan and haggard spectres lived to reeross the Niemen, 

Tho Battle of tlio Nations. To any but Napoleon, 
the Russian disaster would have been overwhelming. 
But with an energy almost superhuman he gathered up 
the fragments of his armies, made fresh conscriptions 
and boldly i'aeed a new, and still more powerful eoali 
tion of his foes. The decisive conflict, the " Battle of 
the Nations," occurred at Leipsic, in 1814, lasting 
three days, and ending in the complete discomfiture ol 
the French. . A desperate but hopeless struggle on the 
soil of France deferred, but could not prevent, the fall 
of Paris. 

Napoleon at Elba. Napoleon was deposed and ban- 
ished to the island of Elba, over which he was allowed 
to rule with the title of Emperor, and Louis XVIII. 
was plaeed upon the throne of his ancestors. AVhile a 
congress of sovereigns and ministers of the leading 
powers was in session at Vienna, to re-adjust the dis- 
ordered affairs of Europe, Napoleon, secretly leaving 
his little empire in the Mediterranean, landed on the 
shores of France, and began a triumphant march 
on the capital. Thousands of the old soldiers of the 
empire flocked to his standard, and he soon entered 
Paris, surrounded by an excited populace, whose old, 
familiar cry, "Long live the Emperor," rent the air on 
every side. Louis XVIII. fled in dismay to the 
frontiers. 

Waterloo, A. D. 1815. The astonished kings at 
Vienna, suddenly startled from their dream of fancied 



GEORGE TTI. 265 

security, and conscious that their crowns and kingdoms 
were once more at stake, quickly formed a new co- 
alition. The council chamber was forsaken for the camp, 
and half a million of men, coming from every quarter of 
(he continent of Europe, were soon on the march for 
France. The armies of England and Prussia were 
first in I he held. Napoleon, hoping to crush them in 
detail, before their junction with the rest, hastened to 
Belgium, the great I tattle ground of Europe, where he 
found himself confronted by the English under Wel- 
lington. On the field of Waterloo,* at the close of a 
Sabbath day in June, Napoleon's sun once more set, 
never to rise again. His last devoted army, after dash- 



* The battle of Waterloo — called by the French St. Jean — was fought on a 
Sunday. All night before, the rain had fallen in torrents; and when the troops 
rose from their cheerless bivouac among the crushed and muddy rye, a driz- 
zling rain still fell. The armies faced each other upon two gentle 6lopes, near 
which ran the high road to Brussels. The army ol Wellington numbered move 
than 70,000, — that of Napoleon about 80,000 men. Between, in a slight hollow, 
lay the farm-houses of Ilougomont and La Have Sainte, round which the 
bloodiest combats of the day took place. Tho battle began at ten o'clock. 
Napoleon knew that he was a ruined man unless he could pierce and break the 
red masses that lay between him and Brussels, lie kept, closely to one plan of 
action, — a storm of shot and shell upon the British ranks, and then a rapid 
rush of lancers and steel-clad cuirassiers. But the British infantry, formed 
into solid squares, met every charge like the rocks that encircle their native 
shore. Again, and again, ami again the baffled cavalry of Fiance recoiled with 
many an empty saddle. This was a terrible game to play; and well might 
Wellington, when he looked on the squares, growing every moment smaller, as 
soldier alter soldier stepped silently into the place of his fallen comrade, pray 
that either night or Blucher would come. It was seven o'clock in the evening 
before the distant, sound ol the Prussian cannon was heard. Blucher had out- 
marched Grouchy, and was hastening to Waterloo. Napoleon then made the 
grandest effort of the day. The Old Guard of France, unoonquered veterans 
of Austerlitz and Jena, burst in a furious onset upon the shattered ranks of 
Britain; but, at one magic word, the British squares dissolved into 'thin red 
lines,' glittering With bayonets, and, with a cheer that rent the smoke-cloud 
hovering above tho field, swept on to meet the foe. The French columns 
wavered — broke — fled; and Waterloo was won.— [Collier. 



2(>6 GEORGE TTT. 

ing again and again, like ocean billows, against the rod 
English squares that stood "like the rocks that encircle 
(heir native shore," poured, bleeding, back to France. 
Napoleon at St. Helena. In 181"), about twenty 
years after his firsl appearance on the stage o( European 
politics, Xanolcon Bonaparte was consigned to per- 
petual captivity on the island of St. Helena, in the 
heart of the Atlantic. His career constitutes one oi 
th^ most thrilling episodes in all history. Reverses of 
fortune are among the most common events of human 
life, but the annals of the past furnish few instances to 
compare with that of Napoleon. Since few can rise to 
so dizzy a height of power and glory, few can experience 
so great a fall. What a contrast ! Napoleon the Em- 
peror, and Napoleon the Exile ! Napoleon conquering 
states and dispensing thrones, at once the terror and 
admiration oi' a continent, and Napoleon, sad, solitary, 
and forgotten, looking hopelessly out from the lonely, 
barren rock, upon the silent, shoreless sea, the mighty 
soul within stirred only with the melancholy memory 
of vanished grandeur 1 On the 5th oi' May, 1821, 
while a hurricane swept with unusual violence across 
the unprotected isle, and the surging billows beat 
with a mournful and monotonous sound upon the 
shore, the fettered, restless spirit of the great soldier 
passed away from earth. What a commentary doi>s the 
career oi' Napoleon furnish, on the instability oi' worldly 
things, and the evanescent character oi' worldly glory. 
Resting on any other foundation than that of everlast- 
ing truth and right, the grandest conceptions of the 
genius oi' man often prove as fleeting and unreal as 
the " baseless fabric of a dream." 1 lis gilded creat ions, 
however stable they may seem, will flash for a few 



orcrmott tti. 267 

brief hoars in the sunlight of hope, and then fade with 
the gathering twilight, and vanish utterly away in the 
quick coming night. 

Causes of England's Second War with the United States. 

Right of Search and Impressment of Seamen. In 

the midst of the wars with Napoleon, and just as the 
latter was getting ready to invade Russia, England 
engaged in her second war with the United States, in 
defence of the " right of search" and of the." impress- 
ment of seamen." So exhausting were the Avars with 
Napoleon, that England could with difficulty find 
seamen for her nav} r . It was a settled principle of 
her government, that a person born a British subject 
could never surrender his allegiance to his country, 
no matter in what part of the world he might take up 
his abode. Acting on this principle, her captains boldly 
searched American ships on the high seas, and im- 
pressed all Britisb-born seamen found therein. 

This course was unqualifiedly condemned b} the 
United States, whose policy it has always beci , to 
regard all persons of foreign birth living under tho 
protection of its Hag, who had cither been naturalized, 
or had taken any of the legal steps necessary to that 
end. as American citizens, and as such, entitled to the 
protection of the government. The case against Great 
Britain was aggravated by the fact, that, in many in- 
stances, the impressed seamen were of American birth. 
Above six thousand seamen were forcibly taken from 
American ships and compelled to serve ou British 
men-of-war, within the period of a few years. 



268 GEORGE in. 

"Decrees" of Napoleon and "Orders" of the English 
Council. The war feeling in the United States was 
increased by the "decrees" of Napoleon and the 
"orders" of the English Council, declaring, respec- 
tive.y, the ports of England and France to be in a state 
of blockade. This was particularly injurious to the 
United States, since, being a neutral power, she was, to 
a considerable extent, engaged to do the canying trade 
of Europe. Between French and English cruisers, the 
commerce of the United States was well-nigh swept 
from the seas. Napoleon, in 1811, withdrew the appli- 
cation of the "decrees" from the United States, making 
the war feeling against England all the more intense. 
Between the year 1807, and the declaration of war in 
1812, it has been computed that one thousand American 
merchant ships were taken by British cruisers. 

Declaration of War by the United States. War 
was declared by the United States, June 10th, 1812. 
It was fought chiefly on the sea, the United States 
gaining many signal victories. Privateers, being com- 
missioned in large numbers, frequented all the routes 
of English commerce, and gained a rich harvest in the 
capture of English merchant ships. Operations on 
the land were limited to the Canadian frontier, and to 
descents on exposed points along the coast. General 
Ross, sailing up the Chesapeake, made a sudden raid 
on the capital, and, with a vandalism that belonged to a 
by-gone age, burned to the ground most of the public 
buildings. 

Battle of New Orleans. The last battle of the war 
was fought at New Orleans on the 8th of January, 1815. 
The British under Sir Edward Packenham were com- 



GEORGE III. 269 

pletcly repulsed by the Americans under General 
Jackson, Packenham himself being slain. 

Peace of Ghent. It was, of course, unknown to 
both commanders, that fifteen days before, on the 24th 
of December, 1814, peace had been made at Ghent. 
Although the treaty of peace left unsettled the ques- 
tions at issue between the two countries, English 
captains never afterwards searched American vessels to 
find British subjects, and a few years ago, the English 
government formally abandoned the whole doctrine of 
the " right of search." During the greater part of this 
reign, William Pitt, second son of the Earl of Chat- 
ham, was at the head of the government. 

The Regency. During the last nine years of his life, 
King George was blind and insane, and the Prince of 
Wales ruled as Prince Regent. Though obstinate and 
conservative, George III. was much better than the 
other kings of his name. The simple, homely, familiar 
ways of " Fanner George," as he was called, gained 
him the good will of the people, and the great misfor- 
tune that clouded his later years, won their heartfelt 
sympathy. 

George IV., 1820 to 1830 — 10 years. Brunswick. 

England after the Napoleonic Wars. England 
emerged from the wars with Napoleon the most 
powerful nation in Europe. During this long and 
desperate struggle, nearly all the European nations 
had, at one time and another, been drawn or forced to 
the side of England's foes, and, in consequence, their 
fleets had, one after another, been swept away by the 
superior navy of England, so that her supremacy on 



270 GEORGE IV. 

the sea, first achieved in the reign of Elizabeth, was 
now universally conceded. Isolated from the nations 
of the continent, her own soil had known nothing of 
the desolations that war had brought to theirs. Her 
industries had not only remained undisturbed, while 
theirs had been paralyzed, but they had been forced to 
an unnatural expansion, bringing unexampled pros- 
perity to her capitalists. On the other hand, the return 
of peace caused a re-action, that was followed by a 
crisis in both the national finances and the national 
industries. Manufacturing establishments, stimulated 
to an over-production during the w 7 ar, could not at once 
adapt themselves to the new conditions of a state of 
peace, and they were compelled to contract, and, in 
many cases, to close, operations altogether. Thousands 
of operatives in all the manufacturing districts were 
thus thrown out of employment, who, having laid up 
nothiug during the time of prosperity, were now 
suddenly reduced to want. 

The disbandment of the army and navy forces had 
released multitudes of men, many of whom could not 
find the employment they sought, while more w r ere 
restless in spirit and had little taste for the quiet pur- 
suits of life. Although the rates for the poor were 
everywhere largely increased, destitution and suffering 
were everywhere inevitable. The Napoleonic Avars had 
greatly increased the public debt, which at their close 
amounted to £800,000,000, and the people were 
heavily burdened with taxation. The necessaries of 
life had reached exorbitant figures during these wars, 
enriching laud owners and large dealers, but bearing 
heavily on the poor. 



GEORGE IV. 271 

The Corn Law. During the year after the close of 
the Napoleonic wars, the land owners, with a policy 
as short-sighted as it was seltish, secured the passage 
of a law placing such a duty on corn as virtually to 
prohibit its importation. High prices were thus main 
tained, especially on the bread of the poor, after theL 
income had greatly diminished or had ceased altogether. 
Idleness, poverty, and suffering produced discontent 
and incipient rebellion, but this only brought upon the 
unhappy people the strong arm of the law, and aggra- 
vated the miseries of their condition. 

Agitation on the Subject of Reform. The people 
attributed their distress to bad legislation, and not 
wholly without cause, and the remedy, in their minds, 
was increased political power on the part of the masses. 
Then began an agitation on the subject of reform in 
the laws, never known before in England. The active 
English mind, no longer engrossed with the excitements 
of foreign war, employed itself in questions of domestic 
policy, and the resources of the ministry and statesmen 
of England were taxed to the utmost, to meet the social 
and political problems that constantly presented them- 
selves for solution. From the passage of the Corn 
law, in 1815, to the present time, England has been 
the arena of an unintermittiug strife on the subject of 
reform. Reform has been the all-ensrossins: theme at 
the fireside and in the cabinet, at the hustings and in 
legislative halls. Reform and Anti-Reform have been 
inscribed on party banners, and have been the issues of 
party politics. The period embraced in the last three 
reigns, those of George IV., William IV., and Victoria, 
might be called the Era of Reform. We can here notice 



272 GEORGE IT. 

only the most important matters that have successively 
agitated the public mind, and the leading measures 
that have been enacted, tending to the removal of class 
and religious distinctions, to the equalization of civil 
and political rights, and especially, to the amelioration 
of the condition of the poor, and their advancement in 
the scale of being. If the progress of reform has been 
slow, on account of the bitter resistance of powerful 
conservative elements, it has also been sure. No essen- 
tial step in this grand march of the English people 
towards the ideal of all just government, the greatest 
good to the greatest 11111111)01-, has been retraced. Tem- 
porary checks and defeats have made their ultimate 
triumphs all the more complete. 

The liepeal of the Corporation and Test Acts. The 
Corporation Act, passed in the reign of Charles II., 
required the officers of corporations or boroughs to 
conform to the rites of the restored Episcopal Church, 
and was specially designed to effect the removal of 
Puritans, who occupied most of the borough offices. 

The Test Act, passed later in the reign of Charles 
II., made the same requirements of civil and military 
officers, with the addition of the Oath of Supremacy, 
and was enacted at a time when it was supposed Charles 
was scheming to restore Catholicism to England. But the 
perils against which these statutes were designed to 
guard, had, at the time of George IV., long since passed 
away. The State church was firmly established, and 
proscriptive laws on account of religion had not only 
become needless, but they were a source of perpetual 



GEOEGE IV. 273 

discontent. After much agitation, in 1S2S both these acta 
were repealed in their most odious features. 

The Catholic Emancipation Bill. But the Cath 
olics had disabilities more irksome than those just men- 
tioned. At the time of the " Popish Plot," in the reign 
of Charles II.j Catholics were made ineligible to Parlia- 
ment, and, although this plot was clearly seen at the time 
to be a pure fabrication, they were not restored to mem- 
bership, and, lor a century and a half, had no voice in 
the counsels of the nation. The Irish Catholics labored 
under peculiar hardships. In 1801 the constitutional 
union of Great Britain and Ireland was effected, thirty 
Irish lords and one hundred commoners being admitted 
to the English Parliament. This union, though origi- 
nally designed by Pitt, who was Prime Minister, 
as one of a series of measures to bind England 
and Ireland more closely together, was not only 
distasteful to the great body of the Irish people, who 
preferred their old independent Parliament, but it drew 
in its train a new, and, in time, an intolerable grievance. 
Only Protestants could sit as members in the cham- 
bers of the English Parliament. It is difficult to 
say which was felt to be the greater grievance to 
Catholic Ireland, to have no representation, or to 
be restricted to a Protestant one. The discontent 
of the Irish people rose to fever height, culmi- 
nating in outbreaks which were trodden out in 
blood. Bill after bill for the relief of Ireland was 
brought into Parliament only to be voted down. 
Associations in which almost every Catholic and many 
Protestants became enrolled, were formed throughout Ire- 
land, to secure the repeal of the disabling laws. Daniel 



274 GEORGE IV. 

O'Counell, an eloquent Irish barrister, the acknowl- 
edged head of these associations, was at this time all 
but supreme in his power over the Irish people. In 
1827, he was elected to Parliament from the County 
of Clare, but was ineligible on account of his religion. 
The climax to Irish endurance was reached, when 
O'Conncll was refused the seat to which he had been 
elected, and Parliament soon came to sec that there 
was but a choice of alternatives, justice to Ireland, or 
War with a united and a determined people. A bill 
was accordingly introduced to admit Catholics to Par- 
liament. Even Wellington, long the opponent of 
reform, who had looked calmly on death in many a 
bloody battlc-tield, shrank from the horrors of a 
religious war in Ireland. Said the Iron Duke, on 
moving the second reading of the bill, "If I could 
avoid, by any sacrifice whatever, even one month of 
civil war in the country to which I am attached, I 
would sacrifice my life to do it." 

In a little more than a month, April 13th, 1829, the 
bill, having passed both houses, received the royal sig- 
nature and became law. Roman Catholics were placed 
on an equality with Protestants, except that they re- 
mained ineligible to tho throne, the chancellorship, 
the lord-lieutenancy of Ireland, and to offices in Protest- 
ant Universities. O'Conncll at once took his seat in the 
House of Commons. 

Navarino, A.D. 1827. In the early part of the reign 
of George IV., the Greeks, who had suffered under 
Moslem rule for more than three centuries, rose iu 
rebellion. The sailing of an expedition from Egypt 
to lay waste the Morea, and to carry away its inhabi- 



GEORGE IV. 275 

tants into slavery, caused a coalition of England, 
France, and Russia in behalf of the helpless Greeks. 
The allied fleets, entering the harbor of Navarino in the 
latter part of 18l'7, annihilated the entire Turkish and 
Egyptian navies. Greece was made an independent 
kingdom, and Otho, a Bavarian prince, was placed upon 
the throne. A touching and romantic interest is con- 
nected with the struggle of the Greeks for indepen- 
dence, on account of its association with Lord Byron. 
The unhappy poet devoted his fortune and the last 
efforts of his genius to the cause of Greece. On its 
classic soil, and in its service, he breathed his last. 

Character of George IT. George the Fourth is one 
of the most uninteresting, as well as despicable, sov- 
ereigns that ever sat on the English throne. The 
time had gone by when an English king could over- 
ride the laws, else George IV. would have been a 
tyrant. He threw what little influence he possessed 
against the cause of reform, retarding, but not defeat 
ing, its progress. lie was profligate in the extreme, and 
spent most of his time in the company of the worth- 
less. His flatterers called him "the first gentleman in 
Europe," a title that rested solely on his possession of 
a well-shaped figure, polished manners, and exquisite 
taste in matters of dress. Through his licentious habits 
he had lost the respect of his people, while his relentless 
persecution of his wife had excited their intense and 
lasting dislike. He had married, when Prince of 
Wales, his own cousin, the Princess Caroline of Bruns- 
wick. After submitting to every species of indignity 
from her husband, Caroline returned to her home on 
the continent. After the elevation of George to 



1 1 6 GF.OUC. B IV. 

the throne, a bill wu introduced into Parliament Ebi 
the divorce of the crownless queen, but so intense 

was public feeling against the king, it was finally 

allowed to drop. Queen Caroline died in about a year, 
broken down with shame and grief. George IV. died 
in 1830, leaving do heirs, and the throne descended to 
bis brother William. 

William IV., 1S;>0 to 1837— 7 years. Urunswick. 
State of Feeling in England at the Accession of 

William. The brief period of William's reign was one 
of unprecedented political excitement. The question 
of reform, fairly launched upon the sea o( English 
politics during the preceding reign, became the exclu- 
sive object oi % public attention. During the first year 
of William's reign a revolution broke out in Prance, 
that excited grave apprehensions in England as well as 
on the continent. The French people had caught the 
spirit that animated the English masses, and were call- 
ing loudly for reform. The French ministry sought to 
crush this spirit by ordinances, subverting the consti- 
tution o( the country, and destroying the freedom o( 
the press. The exasperated Parisians rose at once in 
arms. For three days were the streets of the capital 
the scene of indescribable confusion and carnage, 
when the government troops were driven from the city, 
and the king. Charles X.. was compelled to abdicate 
the throne. Louis Philippe, Puke o\ % Orleans, was 
appointed Lieutenant-Genera] o( the kingdom. For 
awhile, the tricolor, the symbol ot' French republican- 
ism, tloated over the city of Paris in place o( the white 
flag of royalty, but. in the end Louis was made king 



w ii.i.i am iv. 277 

under a liberal constitution. A feverish and almost 
revolutionary spirit was kindled among the masses 
throughout Europe by the revolution in France. In 
Brussels, ;i using of the people terminated in ;i sep- 
aration from Holland, and the founding of the new 
kingdom of Belgium. Tlie excitement in England, 
created by this revolution, happily found vent in the 
election that was near at hand, which resulted in re- 
turning a House of Commons overwhelmingly Liberal. 
The conservative Duke of Wellington was forced to 
yield his place as Prime Minister to Earl Grey, who was 
in sympathy with the new House. Wo arc now brought 
to the consideration of another of those great statutes, 
that stand like mile-stones in the pathway of English 
progress, the Reform Bill of L832. 

The Reform Bill ol* is;tt. One of the crying 
grievances of the English people was the inequality of 
representation in Parliament. In early times the kings 
had designated the (owns that were to be represented 
in the lower house. They usually selected (hose most 
important. Towns were occasionally added to the list, 
sometimes as a matter of justice, and sometimes as a 
matter of favoritism. There was no law or basis of 
representation. In the course of time a great change 
came over the face of England. The growth of manu- 
factures had made new centres of population. Thriv- 
ing towns and cities, such as Birmingham, Leeds, and 
Sheffield, had sprung up in the wilderness. On the 

other hand, flourishing towns had dwindled into mere 
hamlets, and in some, eases had disappeared altogether. 
But through all this shifting of the population, there 
had been comparatively few changes in the represents 



278 william rv. 

lion in Parliament. Old Sarum, "without a house 
within its limits, continued to send two representa- 
tives to every Parliament, while Birmingham, a great 
bus} hive of industry, remained entirely unrepre- 
sented. These "rotten" or "pocket" boroughs, as the 
towns "were called, that had representation, but little or 
no constituency, were under the control of noblemen, 
who either selected the persons to represent them, or 
offered the places tor sale. A Reform Bill Avas intro- 
duced into Parliament early in 1831, designed to re- 
adjust ami equalize the system of representation. It 
passed the House of Commons after a prolonged dis- 
cussion, but was defeated in the House of Lords. The 
excitement in England became intense. Riots and 
conflagrations constantly disturbed the peace o\.' the 
kingdom. The conservative Lords becoming alarmed 
at the temper of the people, which threatened the most, 
serious results, followed the example of the liberal 
Commons, and passed the Reform Bill at their next 
session in 1832. Fifty-six "pocket" boroughs, having 
one hundred and twelve representatives, were dis- 
franchised, while thirty more were allowed each a single 
representative, making a total reduction of one hun- 
dred and forty-two members. The vacant seats were 
distributed among forty-two large and flourishing 
towns, thai hail previously no representation. 

Results of Reform Legislation. Besides leading to 
immense material benefit to the people, the Reform 
Dill of 1ST) -J conferred on the liberal element a power 
it had never known before. The cause oi' reform 
gained a prestige that made other progressive move- 
ments easy and rapid. For the first time, the manu- 



WILLIAM IV. 279 

faotxi ring and general business interests had able and 
adeq late representation in Parliament. 

Hitherto, the Land-holders had moulded legislation to 
meet their peculiar wauls. Now, measures began to be 
devised and framed into statutes, for the development 
of commerce and manufactures, making them, in 
time, the leading interests of the British people. As 
an illustration of the progress made, it may be stated, 
that, atthe beginning of the reign of William IV., 
Great Britain hail three hundred and fifteen steam- 
vessels with a tonnage of 33,441. At its closo she had 
six hundred steam-vessels with a tonnago of 67,961). 
At its beginning there was but a single railway line of 
importance on the island. At its closo all the great 
manufacturing centres and mining districts had rail- 
road facilities for the transportation of goods and pas- 
sengers to the metropolis and leading seaports. 

Abolition of Slavery in the Colonies. The aboli- 
tion of slavery in the colonics was one of the subjects 
that had agitated the public mind. Wilberforce and 
other philanthropists had labored for nearly forty 
years in the cause of emancipation. In 1833, a bill was 
introduced into Parliament, giving freedom to all the 
slaves in the British colonics, and appropriating £20,- 
000,000 as compensation to tho planters. It passed 
without serious opposition, removing one of the foul- 
est stains that ever disgraced a civilized nation. 

Character of William IV. William EV. was called the 
"Sailor King," from his early connection with the Eng- 
lish navy. Ho was a worthy man and a just and ablo 
ruler. He was in hearty sympathy with tfio reform 
movements of the day, and for this leason was held in 



280 WILLIAM IV. 

high esteem among the people. The careless, easy, 
open manners of the sailor clung to him to the last, 
increasing still more his popularity among the English 
masses. He had long been afflicted with hay fever. 
In 1837, his disease assumed a more aggravated form, 
and he sank rapidly under its attacks, and died on the 
18th of June, in the seventy-second year of his age. 

Victoria, 1837. Brunswick. 

Reform Legislation in the Reign of Victoria. 

William IV. died without heirs, leaving the crown to 
his niece, Alexandrina Victoria. As the Salic law pre- 
vailed in Hanover, forbidding female succession, that 
kingdom reverted, at once, to Ernest, Duke of Cum- 
berland, the nearest male heir of the House of Bruns- 
wick. Hanover had been a useless and an expensive 
appendage of the British empire since the accession of 
George I., and its return to the condition of an inde- 
pendent state was not regretted by the English people. 
The legislation of this reign has been characterized 
even more than that of its predecessors by the spirit 
of progress. We shall not undertake so much as to 
name all the unequal and oppressive statutes and prac- 
tices, the relies of less civilized ages, which have been 
swept away forever, nor all the measures that have 
been devised to perfect the liberties and enlarge the 
opportunities of the English people. "Reform Bills," 
the matured products of an enlightened statesmanship, 
have followed each other in rapid succession. Under 
the inspiration and guidance of such men as "Wilber- 
force, Brougham, Cobden, and Bright, the reform move- 
ments have advanced with rapid strides. The English 



VICTORIA. 281 

government, at lirst following somewhat slowly and 
reluctantly in the footsteps of an advancing public sen- 
timent, now leads the van in the grand march of im- 
provement. Not only has it secured to the English 

people, in a broad and general sense, the enjoyment 
of civil and religions liberty, but it has brought within 
(he seope of its inquiry the minutest details of thoir 
condition. And not alone at home, but to the re- 
motest limits of an empire " upon which the sun never 
sets," has a beneficent legislation extended a hand of 
helpfulness to British subjects. 

Repeal of the Corn Laws. Although the Corn laws, 
passed in 1815, had undergone repeated changes, they 
still fettered English commerce and remained an op- 
pressive burden to the poor. The discontent of the 
people found expression, in 1839, in an organization, 
called " The Anti-Corn-Law League," designed to se- 
cure the repeal of all duties on breadstuff's. 

At the head of this League stood Richard Cobden 
and John Bright, two of England's noblest sons. Tho 
difficulties in the way of a repeal of the Corn laws 
seemed almost insuperable. Notwithstanding the in- 
creased representation of tho manufacturing and com- 
mercial classes in Parliament, nine-tenths of the mem- 
bers still represented the landed interests, and held 
firmly to a high tariff on imported grain. They 
argued that the repeal of the Corn laws would destroy 
the profits of agriculture, at that time the leading in- 
terest ; that the land would cease to be cultivated and 
return to a state of wilderness, and that the condition 
of the rural population, dependent, as they were, on 
the cultivation of tho soil, would become deplorable. 



282 VICTORIA. 

The Reform League directed its efforts not so miuh 
to the conversion of members of Parliament, as to tlio 
creation of a public sentiment in favor of tree trade, 
and so to a gradual change in the complexion of the 
House of Commons. Public speakers wore sent into 
all the rural districts, whore they addressed vast as- 
semblies of the working people in behalf of their favor- 
ite doctrine. Papers and pamphlets, advocating the 
same views, "were scattered all over England. The 
result of efforts so persistent and systematic may 
easily be anticipated. The great change that took 
place even among the people o( the agricultural dis- 
tricts, was soon perceptible in the increasing number 
of free traders elected to Parliament. But the Corn 
League met unexpected opposition from another and 
an older organization, also devoted to the interests of 
reform. 

The Chartists. Xo sooner had the excitement at- 
tending the reform movement o\' 1832 subsided, than 
a new agitation began to occupy public attention. It 
finally culminated, in 1838, in an organization bearing 
the name of "The Chartists." Its principles and 
objects were embodied in a document called" The Peo- 
ple's Charter," under six distinct heads : — 1st. Uni- 
versal suffrage. 2d. Vote by ballot. 3d. Animal 
Parliaments. 4th. Payment of members ot' Parlia- 
ment. 5th. Abolition of the property qualification. 
6th. Equal electoral districts. At the rise of the 
" Anti-Corn-Law League," the Chartists sought to 
unite the forces of the two movements, but the loaders 
of the League refused to adopt the six articles o\' the 
Chartists, thinking it wiser to direct their efforts to the 



YICTORIA. 283 

accomplishment of the single end they hud in view — 
the repeal of the Corn laws. The Chartists, under the 
lead of Feargus O'Connor, then threw their influence 
against the cause of the League. In spite of all ob- 
stacles the latter organization carried its point. Sil 
Robert Peel, who was at the head of a conservative 
ministry, became a convert to the doctrine of free 
trade, and a bill for the repeal of the Corn laws passed 
through both Houses in 1846. But the complete extinc- 
tion of duties on brcadstuils did not take place till 
1849. The same year the famous Navigation laws, 
originally passed during the Commonwealth, in 1(351, 
and amended from time to time, were entirely repealed, 
and thus the last obstacle to trade with England was 
removed. The predictions of disaster to the agricul* 
tural interests and to the rural population, so freely 
made during the progress of the campaign, were not 
realized. Since that day " free trade" — the right to 
buy in the cheapest, and to sell in the dearest, market 
— has been the watchword in England. 

The Chartists had divided into two wings, the radi- 
cal and the conservative. The excesses of the radical 
wing, and its threats to overthrow the government and 
to establish a Republic, unless "The People's Charter" 
were adopted, had brought the whole movement into 
disrepute. Little was heard of it again until the year 
1848, when another French revolution disturbed the 
peace of Europe. Its effect in England was an immense 
revival of Chartism. Petitions were industriously 
circulated for the adoption of " The People's Charter " 
by parliament. These petitions, claiming to have 
5,700,000 signatures, were to be carried to the House 



284 VICTORIA. 

of Commons, at the head of a procession of half a 
million persons. The possibility that a revolution 
might be attempted, similar to that which had just 
taken place in France, led the government to make the 
most gigantic preparations to meet it. The procession 
was declared to be illegal and forbidden to take place. 
Special constables, to the number of one hundred and 
seventy thousand, wen' sworn in, among whom was 
Prince Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, who was soon to 
accomplish another revolution in France, and to place 
himself at the head of the restored Empire. All avail- 
able troops were brought to the capital and placed 
under the command o( the Duke of Wellington. The 
preparations oi' the government terrified the Chartists, 
and on the day appointed for their grand demonstra- 
tion only thirty thousand assembled at the rendezvous 
on Kennington Common. No procession was attempted 
and the monstrous petition was wheeled to the House 
of Commons and respectfully presented by Feargus 
O'Connor, the Chartist leader. A careful examination 
of its contents discovered that there were less than 
two, instead of more than live, million signatures, and 
a large number i)( these were found to be spurious. 
From this moment Chartism, convicted oi' fraud, ami 
branded as revolutionary, fell into public contempt, and 
the whole Chartist organization speedily dissolved. 
But its elements, re-organized, and carrying forward the 
work of reform in a less odious manner, have partially 
accomplished (he objects of "The People's Charier." 
The property qualifications have been nearly abol- 
ished, the right of suffrage made almost universal, and 
the secret ballot substituted for open voting. A bib, 



VICTORIA. 285 

passed it 1858, modified the oath required of Jews, 

making them eligible to Parliament. 

The Disestablishment of the Irish Church. The 
Catholic Emancipation Bill had done much towards the 
pacification of Ireland. Ot' the grievances still re- 
maining, the requirements ot' the law in regard to the 
established, or Anglican, church, were perhaps the most 
exasperating to the Irish people. The communicants 
of thh church numbered about one-eighth of the pop- 
ulation, those ot* the various dissenting bodies some- 
what less, while the Roman Catholic church embraced 
within its pale the rest, somewhat more than six-eighths 
of the entire population. Besides supporting their 
own worship, the Catholics were compelled to pay cer- 
tain specific tithes, to support the worship ot' the An- 
glican church. Although all the temporalities of the 
church, amounting to £ It", 000, 000, with an income of 
nearly £1,000,000, were in the hands ot' the Anglican 
clergy, the very bread was often taken from the pov- 
erty-stricken hovel of the delinquent Irish Catholic, or 
his solitary cow driven away, and ''the wolf left at his 
door," that God might be worshiped in Ireland after 
the established manner. We cannot wonder that the 
Irishman, as he saw his hungry children gather about 
the scanty board, sometimes turned, in rage or despair, 
with a vindictive purpose, upon the exacting tax-gath- 
erer, or that violence and misery filled the beautiful, 
but misgoverned, land. 

In 1869, during the Gladstone ministry, a bill was 
introduced into Parliament to disestablish the Irish 
church. This bill placed all the religious sects ou the 
same level, making them alike dependent on the vol- 



286 VICTORIA. 

untary contributions of the people for their support It 
passed the House of Commons by a large majority. 
In the House ot Lords, though, denounced as revolu- 
tionary, it also received a majority of the votes cast, 
and became a law, January 1st, 1871. 

Of unsettled Irish questions, the relation of landlord 
and tenant is both the most fruitful of trouble and 
the most difficult of solution. The rebellions and 
confiscations of past times have placed most of the land 
in the hands of a few proprietors. The great estates 
have been divided into small farms and rented to the Irish 
people, the greater part of whom are dependant on the 
cultivation of the soil for a livelihood. Being mere ten- 
ants at will of the proprietors, they have had neither 
pride nor interest in making improvements on the 
farms which they occupy. The Irish Land ^ill, pass- 
ed in 1870, allowing tenants, if compelled to vacate, 
payment for permanent improvements made by them, 
has not realized the expectations of its framers, for, 
in most cases, the rents have been so exorbitant 
that tenants could not make such improvements. Of 
recent legislation under the ministry of Gladstone, 
designed to protect the rights of property, on the one 
hand, and ameliorate the condition of the Irish people, 
on the other, it is too early to speak. But it is doubt- 
ful if Ireland will ever be fully pacified, until she is 
allowed some form of self-government. 

Educational Bill. The same Parliament established a 
national system of public schools, resembling, in many 
respects, the New England system, having local school 
boards, and furnishing all needed help to indigent chil- 
dren. The necessity of legislation on :i subject so vital 



VICTORIA. 287 

to the welfare of the nation was made apparent during 
the consideration of the bill. An investigation showed 
that two-thirds of the children of England were utterly 
destitute of school privileges. Of 83,000 children in 
Birmingham, only 26,000 attended school. Of 90,000 
in Liverpool, but 30,000 had school advantages. The 
Education Bill was warmly supported by men of both 
parties, and became law on the 22d of July, 1870. 
Under the direction of boards of education, schools 
were speedily established in all parts of England, and 
to-day. except in some of the more sparsely settled 
districts, every child in England can receive the rudi- 
ments of an English education. 

The Foreign Policy. The foreign policy of this 
reign has, on the whole, been peaceful. Its wars have 
been distant, and, for the most part, unimportant. 
They have been waged chiefly in Asia and Africa. A 
useless war with Afghanistan, in 1839, grew out of 
jealousy of the designs of Russia in Asia. A war was 
waged with Abyssinia in 18G7 to effect the release of 
English subjects, held in captivity by Emperor Theo- 
dore. 

War with Egypt. In 1840, the Pasha of Egypt 
threw off the Turkish yoke. He entered Asia at the 
head of a large army, for the purpose of detaching 
Syria from the Ottoman empire. The Sultan, unable 
to rescue his Asiatic dominions from the grasp of the 
warlike Pasha, appealed to Russia, England, and 
France for help. France, though inclined to aid the 
Pasha, remained neutral, while Russia and England 
united to preserve the integrit} r of the Ottoman em- 
pire. Their combined fleets, under the command of 



288 VICTORIA. 

Commodore Napier, bombarded the strongly fortified 
town of Acre, the key of all Syria, and compelled its 
surrender in three hours. The appearance of the allied 
fleet before Alexandria forced the rebellious Pasha to 
sue for peace. But the treaty that followed was more 
favorable to Egypt than to Turkey, for it left the 
Pasha only a nominal subject of the Ottoman Porte, 
and the Pashalic of Egypt was made the inheritance 
of his family. Syria, that under the brief but enlight- 
ened rule of the Pasha had entered upon a new career 
of peace and prosperity, was left to groan under the 
iron heel of the Moslem power. 

Wars with China. A shameful war was waged with 
China to force upon her the trade in opium. The Em- 
peror of China, seeing the deadly effects of the poison- 
ous drug upon his people, forbade its importation. The 
English merchants, unwilling to give up the profitable 
trade, and having resorted to smuggling, were impris- 
oned by the Chinese government, and whole cargoes 
of opium were seized and destroyed. War was declared 
by the British government in 1840. The surrender of 
Canton to a British army, and the siege of Nankin, 
forced the Emperor to submit. The cession of Hong 
Kong to the British, and the openiug of five principal 
ports to commerce, were the results. The renewal of 
war in 1856, on account of an outrage to a vessel 
sailing under British colors, resulted in a treaty, open- 
ing all China both to merchants and to missionaries. 

The Balance of Power. In his "Law of Nations," 
Vattel thus defines the expression "balance of power" : 
* By this balance is to be understood such a disposition 
of things, as that no one potentate or state shall bo 



VICTORIA. 289 

able absolutely to predominate and to prescribe to the 
others." The mere principle of an alliance among 
states exposed to a common danger is as old as the 
existence of states themselves ; but the use of this 
principle in ancient times was only occasional or acci- 
dental. Its adoption by any number of states as a 
definite and permanent principle of action is compar- 
atively modern. The states of Greece often combined 
against some one of their number, that seemed to be 
attaining to a power dangerous to the rest. The coalitions 
against the occupation of Italy by the French under 
Charles VIII. , and against the ambitious schemes of 
Ferdinand II. of Germany, the repeated alliances to 
repel the aggressions of Louis XIV. of France, and 
the wars inspired by the vaulting ambition of Napoleon, 
are all illustrations of its use in modern Europe. 

After the close of the Napoleonic wars, the idea 
of a permanent organization of powers to maintain the 
established equilibrium in Europe took definite shape. 
The five great powers of Great Britain, France, Russia, 
Prussia, and Austria, constituted themselves a standing 
tribunal to preserve the balance of power in Europe. 
From that time to the present, this colossal tribunal 
has dominated over the entire continent, and, as a result, 
comparatively few changes have taken place in territo- 
rial lines. It has operated not only to prevent the 
indue expansion of any one state, but also to break up 
empires whose overshadowing power made them dan- 
gerous to the rest. The partition of the Spanish empire, 
after the death of Charles II., is an illustration of its 
practical application in this direction. An attempt was 
made in a congress at Vienna, \n 1853, to obtain a vote 



£90 VICTORIA. 

to restore the kingdom of Poland, on the plea, that its 
dismemberment had disturbed the balance of power 
in Europe. The opposition of Prussia and Austria, 
each of whom possessed a portion of the dismembered 
kingdom, defeated the project. But the chief value of 
this principle lies in the security which it gives to the 
smaller and weaker states, preventing their absorption 
by their more powerful neighbors. It shielded the 
little Dutch Republic from the ambitious designs of the 
most powerful monarch of his time, Louis XIV. It 
has availed thus far to preserve the integrity of the 
Turkish empire against the aggressions of Russia, whose 
chief ambition is the possession of Constantinople. 

The Crimean War. In 1853, Russia invaded Mol- 
davia and Wallachia, the upper Dannbian provinces of 
Turkey. This was declared by a congress of nations 
at Vienna, to be a violation of the balance of power in 
Europe. Upon the refusal of Russia to withdraw from 
the invaded territory, England and France sent their 
combined fleets to the Black and Baltic Seas. The 
effort to reach St. Petersburg being defeated by the 
strength of the fortifications at Cronstadt, the allies 
concentrated their forces on the Crimea, and laid siege 
to Sebastopol, the great stronghold of Russia on the 
Black Sea. The allied armies landed near the town of 
Eupatoria, the 14th of September, 1854, but it was not 
until the 9th of September, 1855, that they occupied 
the deserted fortifications of Sebastopol. We cannot 
dwell on the painful and protracted siege. To the suf- 
ferings of the soldiers, insufficiently provided with 
food, clothing, and shelter, for a Russian winter, were 
added the horrors of a wasting pestilence rendered all 



VICTORIA. 291 

the more fatal by a lack of medical stores. About 
eighteen thousand British soldiers died of disease during 
the siege, while only four thousand perished through 
the casualties of war. But the gloomy picture is illu- 
mined by a heroism more lofty than that of arms. A 
band of noble women, under the charge of Florence 
Nightingale, left the comforts of their English homes, 
to minister to the wants of their sick and wounded 
countrymen in the plague-stricken camp on the Crimea. 

The passage of the Alma, — the "Charge of the Light 
Brigade " at Balaklava, — the repulse of the Russians at 
Inkermann, — and the capture of the Malakoff Tower, — 
were the most interesting events of the war. The 
occupation of the Malakoff led to the fall of Sebas- 
topol, and forced the Czar of all the Eussias to sue for 
peace. By the treaty that followed, Russia consented 
to abandon all control over Moldavia, Wallachia, and 
Servia, to relinquish her claims to control the mouths 
of the Danube, to dismantle the fortifications of Sebas- 
topol, and to maintain no fleet and no naval station in 
the Black Sea. A few small armed vessels were allowed 
the principal nations, in the Black Sea, for the protection 
of commerce, which was made free to all nations. 

The Sepoy Rebellion. British India had gradually 
extended its boundaries to the Himalayas on the north, 
and to the Indus on the west. There was but a handful 
of English soldiers in the whole of this vast empire, 
the garrisons in the different departments being com- 
posed chiefly of native soldiers, called Sepoys, with 
English officers. 



?9? VICTORIA.. 

The government had decided to supply their Indian 
troops with an improved rifle using a greased cartridge 

whoso end required to be bitten off in loading. The 
fat ot° cows or swine is an abomination to a Mahometan 

e\ ■ Hindoo, and the Sepoys, imagining that the gov 
srument was seeking to entrap them into Christianity 
by requiring them to use a greased cartridge, began to 
revolt. But there was another cause of revolt, a deep- 
seated disaffection on the part o{ the natives, growing 
out of the extortion practised by Kuglish officials. 
From the time of Warren Hasting;* * to the breaking 
out oi the revolt, the Kuglish had made otliee in India 
an avenue to wealth, and the long smothered resent- 
ment of the natives was ready to burst forth on the 
first occasion. The first movement oi the revolt oc- 
curred at Meerut. in Bengal, May 10, 1857. The gar- 
risons in the different districts following the example 
oi that at Meerut. all India was soon in a state of 
insurrection. Over the atrocities perpetrated on Kug- 
lish residents, and especially on helpless women and 
children, we must draw the veil. Indian soldiers, 
hitherto their trusted and faithful protectors, were sud- 
denly transformed into merciless fiends. 

llavelot'k and the Belief of Lucknow. Cawnpore 
on the borders, and Lucknow in the interior, ot' Oude, 
garrisoned by a small number oi British soldiers, were 

• Warren Hastings was a man Of marked ability. Originally a clerk in the 
ewploy of the Bast India Company, ho rose in 1774 to tho position of Governor 

Beneral. He name to tho government of India at a time of great danger. The 

French in alliance with native chiefs renewed the Straggle for the possession 
of tbf Carnatic. With a skill and vigor that remind ns of Robert Clire. Hast- 
ings not only re-established the English authority, but he also greatly extended 
the English dominion. His administration was as unscrupulous as it was able, 
and en his veinrn to England he was impeached for cruelty and extortion. 
His trial lasted from 1788 to 1796. and is one of the most remarkable on reeord. 



VICTORIA. 2\)'.\ 

besieged by a great multitude of savage natives. Gen- 
rnil Havelook, with a small foroe,of whom only fourteen 
hundred were English, pressed bravely forward to re 
lieve the beleaguered towns. He enoountered the Indian 
hordes under Nana Sahib (an enlightened and hitherto 

friendly eliief, but now the most lieree and I loodlhiisly 

of die rebels) in battle after battle. Though viotorious, 
he was every day getting deeper into the enemy's 
country, and his liiile force was slowly melting away. 
At last he reached ( Jawnpore only to learn that its <aii ire 
English population had been massacred. lie started 
at once for Lucknow, fearing lest he should IV too lain 
to save its inhabitants from a like fate. Constantly 
assailed on every side by a host of fieroe, swarthy foes, 
and exposed lo (he burning rays of a tropical sun, the 
heroic little band pressed bravely on and finally reached 
their destination. They found the English shut up in 
the Residency, which bad been hastily fortified at (bo 
beginning of the revolt. Havelook unable to fight his 
way out, encumbered with women and children, could 
only maintain himself within the poor defences of tho 
Residency, and wait for help. 

Campbell ami the Second Relief of Lucknow. The 
English Government hurried re-enforcements, as fast as 
possible, to the theatre of war. Sir Colin Campbell 
was placed at the head of the army. Taking an ample 
force, the gallant Scotchman rapidly advanced to tho 
second relief of Lucknow. Ho had need to hurry. 
Exposed to the incessant fire Of tho enemy, whoso .shot 
pierced every part of (heir retreat except the cellars, 
where the women and children found shelter, (ho Eng- 
lish soldiers at Lucknow wore falling fast. If wo can 



294 VICTORIA. 

but feebly imagine the Bufferings and the horrors of 
the siege, as month after month rolled away without a 
sign of succor, still less can we realize what must have 
been their emotions, when they hoard, beyond the circle 
of their yelling, blood-thirsty foes, the distant sound of 
the Highland music, and, as it came nearer, they caught 
the notes of that old familiar air, "The Campbells 
are coming!" Lucknow was relieved on the 17th oi' 
November, 1857. Though far inferior to the rebels in 
number, Campbell conducted the survivors of the terri- 
ble siege to a place oi' safety. But the noble llaveloek, 
who had borne up under incessant toil and exposure 
so long as danger threatened the helpless people under 
his charge, quickly sickened and died, when the crisis 
had passed ; and another name was added to the Brit- 
ish roll of honor. The prompt and efficient measures 
of the government were crowned with abundant success. 
The English authority w T as re-established more firmly 
than ever in all the revolted districts. An important 
and needed change was made in the transfer of the £ov- 
eminent of India, from the Company, to the Crown. 
The Queen has since been made Empress of India, 
which she governs through a Viceroy aided by a Coun- 
cil of tive members. 

The Affair of the Trent. In 18(>1, a civil war broke 
out in the United States, that early threatened to involve 
that country in another war with Great Britain. The 
revolted states organized a separate republic, under the 
name of "Tho Confederate States of America." Two 
commissioners, Mason and Slidell, were appointed to 
advance the Confederate interests at London and Paris. 
They succeeded in running the blockade, and reaching 



VICTORIA. 295 

Havana, where they took passage on tho Trent, a 
British mail steamer bound lor Liverpool. This vessel 
was overhauled by the United States frigate San Ja- 
cinto, under tho command of Captain Wilkes, and tho 
Confederate commissioners and their secretaries were 
forcibly removed to the latter vessel, and brought to the 
United States. The excitement in England, created by 
this illegal act, was intense. Tho British government 
demanded the instant surrender of tho captured com- 
missioners, and, without waiting for the reply of the 
United States, began vigorous preparations for war. 
Her army and navy were speedily put on a war footing, 
and regiments were dispatched to Canada to secure the 
frontier. But tho excitement subsided as quickly as it 
had risen, for tho United States promptly disavowed 
tho act of her rash captain, and gracefully restored the 
Confederate commissioners to the protection of the 
British tlag. 

Tho Alabama Claims. But tho United States had a 
grievance against Great Britain, growing out of tho 
war, which tho latter country was not so ready to dis- 
avow and settle. Several vessels, the most noted 
of which was the Alabama, had been built and 
equipped in an English dock-yard on tho Clyde, for tho 
uso of tho Confederate States. Though notified by the 
American minister of tho destination of tho vessels, 
the English government took no measures to detain 
them, and they sailed away to prey upon Northern 
commerce. The United States could not afford, during 
the continuance of civil strife, to press claims that 
might lead to war, and so these claims were allowed 
to remain in abeyance. At the close of the war, they 



296 VICTORIA, 

became the subject of diplomacy between the two 

nations. Finally, in 1871, a Joint High Commission, 
composed of five members on each side, met at 'Wash- 
ington and arranged the basis of a treaty. By this 
treaty all the questions at issue between the two 
countries were referred to a tribunal, composed of five 
arbitrators, to be selected, one each by the United 
States, Great Britain, Italy, Switzerland, and Brazil. 
This tribunal met on the 15th of June, 1872, at Geneva, 
Switzerland. It rejected the claims of the United 
States for indirect damages, but awarded as direct 
damages, on account of the depredations of the Ala- 
bama and other English-built privateers, the sum of 
$15,500,000, in gold. This award was promptly paid 
by Great Britain, and the relations of the two countries 
became once more harmonious. 

Queen Victoria. Victoria was but eighteen year- of 
age when she assumed the sovereignty of the vast em- 
pire of Great Britain. She was possessed of refined 
and unpretending manners, a cultivated mind, and a 
deeply religious spirit. Almost forty years have elapsed 
since the memorable morning of the 20th of dune, 
l^o7, when as an acknowledged queen she took her 
seat, for the first time, at the head of the Council table, 
and, in low but melodious tones, made the Declara- 
tion, of which the following is the opening clause : — 

"The severe and afflicting loss which the nation has 
sustained by the death of his majesty, my beloved 
uncle, has devolved upon me the duty of administering 
the government oi' this empire. This awful responsi- 
bility is imposed 141011 me so suddenly, and at so early 
a period of my life, that 1 should feel myself utterly 



VICTORIA. 297 

oppressed by the burden, were I not sustained by the 
hope that Divine Providence, which has called me to 
this work, will give me strength for the performance 
of it, and that I shall find in the purity of my inten- 
tions, and in my zeal for the public welfare, that support 
and those resources which usually belong to a more 
mature age and to long experience." 

The rare fidelity with which, during a period already 
longer than that of most English reigns, the principles 
of this Declaration have been carried out, demonstrate 
that it was not the hollow utterance too common on such 
occasions. Few English sovereigns have been actuated 
by a more profound desire to promote the best inter- 
ests of the English people than the reigning queen. 
Moderately liberal, never partisan, and always con- 
scientious, she has followed, amidst the strife and 
excitement of party politics, the strict line of consti- 
tutional duty. When, in addition to this, we recall the 
virtues of her private life, her faithfulness as a wife, 
and her devotion as a mother, we can understand the 
love as well as the loyalty which she has inspired, so 
deeply and so generally, in the hearts of her people. 

Prince Albert. In 1840, Victoria married Prince Al- 
bert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. In 1861, the Prince died, 
deeply lamented by the English people. Although a 
German by birth, he came to feel all the deep solicitude 
for the welfare of the nation, that animated the queen 
herself. Possessed of marked ability, superior judg- 
ment, and liberal views, ho was an unostentatious, but 
an invaluable, counselor to the queen and to her 
ministry. To him is duo the inception of that series 
of International Exhibitions, that have apparently be- 



vmUw 

a kuo^ U \ aulatin^ 

. \ i . 

I'ho Fu.-.l.-iwl ol' l\'-,l.-.> . 

■ 

■ 

-omo 

trans 

. 

bass, sua : 

■oLnvd England within ivaoh of th» KM ; 

tho p -uitlv 

■ 

-.lorial (MT< ) 

w ise - : - ttian, ignit- 

ing i I 

the r 

t and national pi 

.1 enlighten tho people, 

has boon sho: Mid tho d ■ .-.tally 

tor all exoept tho most heinous Crimea 



flOTOBIAi 299 

cruel punl 1 1 riM ni i of <ii> navy have yielded to a milder 
iukI \< brutalizing dl ciplino. The horrors of prison 
life have been mitigated, and Ux- poor and unfortunate 
of all kinds have been provided ivitfa comfortable 
:i j linn .. Reformatory Institutions have been estab- 
1 1 1 1 * < I \'<>i juvenile delinquents and outcasts, where, 
in removed from circumstances <>f neglect or bru- 
tality, calculated to produce only paupers and crimi- 
nals, they are trained, l»y a management, both wIho 
and humane, to beoome good citizens • Sanitary pre- 
cautions have left few lurking places in town or city 
Imi the i" itilonoe that has so often wasted the popula- 
tion <>i England. Whatever concerns the physical, 
moral, and spiritual welfare of the English people, hoi 
engrossed English state imanship, and become tlm -» n I >- 
|eot of English legifhitioii< 



300 THE KOYAL FAMILY. 



The Royal Family. 

Victoeia, Queen of the United Kingdom i>f Great 
Britain and Ireland, Duchess of Lancaster, Defender 
of the Faith, and Empress of India ; b. (born) May 24, 
1S19 ; ascended the throne, June 20, 1837 ; m. (married) 
Feb. 10, 1840, Albert, Prince of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, 
who died Dec. 15, 1861. 

Victoria Adelaide Maria Louisa, Princess Royal ; 
b. Nov. 21, 1840; m. Frederick "William, Crown Prince 
of Prussia, and has had seven children. 

Albert Edward, his Royal Highness, Prince of 
Wales; b. Nov. 9, 1841; m. March 10, 1863, Princess 
Alexandra of Denmark, and has had five children. 

Alice Maud Mart, b. April 25, 1843 ; m. Frederick 
William, Prince of Hesse-Darmstadt, and has had six 
children ; died Dec. 14, 1878. 

Alfred Ernest Albert, Duke of Edinburgh ; b. Aug. 
6, 1844 ; m. Grand Duchess Alexandrovna of Russia, and 
has had two children. 

Helena Augusta Yictoria ; b. May 25, 1846 ; m. 
Frederick, Prince of Sleswick-Holstein, and has had four 
children. 

Louisa Caroline Alberta ; b. March 18, 1848 ; m. 
John Douglass Campbell, Marquis of Lome, eldest son 
of the Duke of Argyle. 

Arthur William Patrick ALBERT,Duke of Connaught ; 
b. May 1, 1850 ; m. Pri ucess Louisa Margaret of Prussia, 
and has had one child. 

Leopold George Duncan Albert, Duke of Albany ; 
b. April 7, 1S53 ; m. Princess Helena of Waldeck Pyrmont. 

Beatrice Maria Yictoria Feodore ; b. April 14, 1857. 



THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT. 301 

The British Government. 

The Executive Department. The British govern- 
ment consists of three departments, the Executive, 
Legislative, and Judiciary. The Executive power is 
vested in a hereditary sovereign, who rules through a 
Ministry or Cabinet, composed of prominent officials, as 
follows : — 

The First Lord of the Treasury, called Prime Minis- 
ter or Premier ; the Lord Chancellor ; the Lord Privy 
Seal ; the President of the Council ; the Home Secre- 
tary ; the Foreign Secretary ; the Colonial Secretary ; 
the Indian Secretary ; the War Secretary ; the Chancel- 
lor of the Exchequer ; the First Lord of the Admiralty ; 
the President of the Board of Trade ; the President of 
the Poor Law Board ; the Postmaster General ; the 
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster ; and the Chief 
Secretary for Ireland. 

The Cabinet Ministers form a standing committee of 
the Privy Council, a body of prominent men, selected 
by the sovereign as advisers in the administration of 
the government. The Cabinet holds frequent sessions, 
but the Privy Council is summoned only on important 
occasions. The Cabinet Ministers, usually called "the 
government," are held responsible for all the acts of the 
executive department, it being an established principle 
in the British government, that " The king can do no 
wrong." These Ministers remain in office only so long 
as they are sustained by a majority in the House of 
Commons. Whenever the vote of the House is cast 
against any important measure proposed by the minis- 
try, it is accepted by the latter as expressing "a want 



302 THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT. 

of confidence in the government " on the part of the 
people. Two courses are now open to the ministry; 
they either resign at once, in which case the sovereign 
calls upon the leader of the opposite party to form.a 
new ministry ; or they can " appeal to the country,'' 
in which case the sovereign dissolves the Parliament, 
and issues writs for a new election. If the new House 
of Commons is in sympathy with the ministry, the 
latter remain in office ; if not, they promptly resign, 
and a new ministry is formed of the opposite party. 
As the result of the election is readily ascertained, the 
ministerial question is usually settled before the meet- 
ing of the new Parliament. 

An interesting fact may be mentioned in this con- 
nection, illustrating the authority attached in England 
to simple custom or usage. Although the Cabinet has 
existed as the real executive power, for more than a 
century and a half, it is an institution entirely unknown 
to the law, never having been recognized by any Act 
of Parliament. There is no official announcement of 
the names of its members, and no official record of its 
meetings is kept. 

The prerogatives of the Crown are : — the right to 
make peace or war ; to prorogue, dissolve, or summon 
Parliament ; to give or withhold assent to Acts of Par- 
liament ; to send and receive ambassadors ; to confer 
or create titles of nobility ; to grant pardons ; to coin 
money ; to appoint judges and inferior magistrates ; to 
give and revoke commissions in the army and navy ; 
and, as head of the established church, to nominate to 
vacancies in the leading church offices. 



THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT. 303 

The Legislative Department. The legislative power 
is vested in a Parliament consisting of the House of 
Lords and the House of Commons. 

The House of Lords. The House of Lords is com- 
posed of Lords spiritual and Lords temporal. The 
Lords spiritual are the prelates of the Church of Eng- 
land, about thirty in number. The number of Lords tem- 
poral in England is entirely unsettled, but there are 
sixteen Scottish, and twenty-eight Irish, nobles, who 
are elected by the nobility, — those from Ireland for life, 
and those from Scotland for a year. The English 
Lords are hereditary. 

The House of Commons. The House of Commons 
consists of representatives of counties, cities, boroughs, 
and some of the Universities ; England and Wales 
having about five hundred, Scotland about fifty, and 
Ireland about one hundred. 

Bills may be proposed in either House, except those 
appropriating money, which can originate only in the 
House of Commons. The Lords can reject, but they 
cannot alter, money bills. Every bill must be read and 
passed by a majority vote, three times in each House, 
and receive the royal signature, before it can become 
law. Although the sovereign has the right to withhold 
the royal signature, this right has not been exercised 
since the reign of Queen Anne. By its control of the 
public funds, and by its ability, through a ministry 
necessarily in harmony with itself, to shape the entire 
policy of the government, the House of Commons ia 
the chief ruling power. 



304 THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT. 

The Judiciary Department. The Judiciary depart- 
ment consists, in England and Ireland, of the Courts 
of Chancery, Queen's Bench, Common Pleas, and Ex- 
chequer; in Scotland, of the Court of Sessions and the 
High Court of Justiciary. In the rural districts Cir- 
cuit Courts are held twice a year by itinerant justices. 
The House of Lords is the highest law court in the 
empire. There are three kinds of law through which 
justice is administered in England ; Common law, 
Statute law, and the law of Equity. Common law is 
based on custom, or precedents established by former 
decisions of the Courts ; Statute law consists of Acts 
of Parliament ; and the law of Equity is administered 
by the Lord Chancellor, in cases not covered by Statute 
law, and where justice cannot be secured by the Com- 
mon law. 



TOPICAL INDEX. 



Preface, 8 

Kings of England, 5 

Names of Kings and Leading Topics, .... 6 

Genealogical Table, 8 

The British Empire 10 

CHAPTER I. 

The Britons, 11 

Druidism, 12 

First Roman Invasion, 13 

Second Roman Invasion, 13 

Caractacus, 14 

Slaughter of the Druids, ...... 14 

Boadicea, 14 

The Roman Conquest, 15 

The Saxon Conquest, ........ 16 

King Arthur, 17 

The Heptarchy 18 

Introduction of Christianity, 18 

Anglo-Saxon Religion, 19 

Anglo-Saxon Government 20 

CHAPTER II. 

Kgrbert. The Danish Invasions, .... 21 

Alfred tne ttreut. War with the Danes, . . 22 

Alfred's Government, 23 

Alfred's Successors, 21 

Massacre of Danes, 24 

The Danish Conquest, 114 

Comparison between Saxon and Danish Conquests, . 25 

CHAPTER HI. 

Canute the Great. The Reign of Canute, . 27 

305 



506 



TOPICAL INDEX. 



Canute and the Christian Church, .... 

Edward the Confessor. Character of Edward, 

William, Duke of Normandy, 

Battle of Hastings, A.D. 1066, 

CHAPTER IV. 

William the Conqueror. Rolf, the Dane, 

Revolt of the English, 

Confiscation of English Estates, 

The Feudal System Established 

The Doomsday Book 

The Curfew Bell, 

The Norman Language, 

Character of William the Conqueror, .... 
William II. Rebellion of the Barons, . 

Character of William II., 

The Crusades, 

The Benefits of the Crusades, 

The System of Chivalry, 

Henry I. First Charter of Liberties, 

Robert, Duke of Normandy, 

Character and Reign of Henry, 

The White Ship 

Stephen. Civil War, 

Compromise between Stephen and Henry, 

The Robber Barons, 

The Outlaws of the Forest, 



CHAPTER V. 

Henry II. The Condition of England, 

The Establishment of Order, 

Contest between Church and State, 

The Council of Clarendon, 

Thomas a Becket and King Henry, 

The Death of Thomas >i Becket, 

The Judiciary System, 

Trial by Jury, .... 

Conquest of Ireland, 

Henry's Rebellious Sons, 



28 
29 

29 
30 



31 
31 
32 
33 
34 
34 
34 
34 
37 
37 
38 
38 
39 
40 
41 
42 
42 
43 
44 
44 
45 



47 
48 
48 
49 
49 
5C 
60 
51 
52 
52 



TOPICAL, INDEX. 



307 



Richard I. Slaughter of Jews, 

Richard in the Holy Land, 

Richard a Captive in the Tyrol, 

War with France and Death of Richard. 

Character of Richard, 

John. Character of John, 

Loss of Possessions in France, 

John's Quarrel with the Pope, 

The Papal Interdict, 

John's Submission to the Pope, 

Magna Charta, A.D. 1215, 

Patriotism of the Bishops of England, 

Henry III. The Regency, 

Redress the Condition of a Vote of Supplies, 

Henry's Attempt to Overthrow the Charter, 

Rebellion of the Barons, .... 

Simon de Montfort and the House of Commons, A 

Evesham, .... 

Edward I. Conquest of Wales, 

Arbitrary Taxation Forbidden, 

Beginning of the Wars with Scotland, 

Battle of Dunbar, 

William Wallace, 

Robert Bruce, , 

Character of Edward I., . 

Edward II. Character of Edward H., 

Piers Gaveston, .... 

Bannockburn, A.D. 1314, 

Queen Isabella in France, 

Deposition and Death of Edward, . 

Edward III. The Regency, . 

Treaty of Northampton, 

Fall of Isabella and Mortimer, 

Halidon Hill, 

The " Hundred Years' War " with France, 

Cressy, A.D, 1346, 

Calais, 

Neville's Cross, . 

Poictiers, A D. 1366 



D. 1265, 



308 



TOPICAL, INDEX.. 



Loss of French Possessions, 

Internal Disorder, 

The Good Parliament, 

John Wickliffe, 

The English Language, . 

The English People, 

Change in the Methods of Warfare, 

The Two Houses of Parliament, 

Death of Edward, 

nichard II. The Regency, 

Causes of Wat Tyler's Rebellion, 

Emancipation, 

The Black Death, 

The Statute of Laborers, 
The Breaking out of the Rebellion, 
Wickliffe and the First Reformation, 
Otterburn and Chevy Chase, 

Chaucer, 

Tyranny of Richard, 
Deposition of Richard, 

CHAPTER VI. 



Henry IV. Henry's Title, 

The First Martyr at the Stake, 

Revolt in Behalf of Richard II., 

Revolt of the Welsh, 

Revolt of the Percies, 

The Poet-King of Scotland, 

Henry's Troubles, 

11 envy V. The Wise Beginning of Henry's Reign, 

Suppression of the First Reformation, 

Renewal of the " Hundred Years' War, 1 ' 

Agincourt, A. D. 1415. 

Siege of Rouen, . 

Conquest of France and Treaty of Troyes, 

Beginning of the Navy, 

Henry VI. The Dauphin of France Assumes the Crown, 100 

Joan of Arc, 100 

Lo68 of all France, except Calais, .... 103 



TOPICAL INDEX. 



309 



English Discontent, .... 

Jack Cade's Rebellion, .... 
Events Preceding the Wars of the Roses, 
Wars of the Roses, .... 



103 
104 
J 05 
106 



CHAPTER VH. 



£dnard IV. Towton, A.D. 1461 108 

Tewkesbury, A.D. 1471 109 

Character and Government of Edward, . . . 11C 

Results of the Wars of the Roses, Ill 

The Destruction of the Ancient Nobility, ... Ill 
The Loss of Constitutional Liberty, .... 113 

The Decline of Civilization, 115 

Etlwartl V. Usurpation of Richard, Duke of Gloucester, 116 
Iticlmrd III. The Elements of Opposition to Richard, 118 

The Smothered Princes, 118 

Bosworth Field 119 

Character of Richard 120 



CHAPTER VIII. 

Henry VII. Union of York and Lancaster, 

Lambert Simnel 

Perkin Warbeck 

The Statute of Allegiance 

The Discovery of America 

The Revival of Letters, 

The Character and Policy of Henry, 
Henry VIII. Character of Henry VIII. , 

Foreign Affairs, 

Divorce of Catherine of Arragon, 

Cardinal Wolsey, 

The Divorce of Catherine of Arragon Accomplished, 

The Oxford Reformers, 

Erasmus, 

Thomas More, 

Opposition to the Oxford Reformers, 

Martin Luther and the Reformation, 

The Reformation in England, .... 

Bishop Fisher and Thomas More Executed, . 



124 
124 
125 
126 
126 
127 
128 
131 
131 
132 
133 
135 
135 
136 
137 
137 
138 
140 
141 



310 



TOPICAL INDEX. 



Henry Supreme in Church and State, 
The Suppression of the Religious Houses, 
The Bloody Statute, 
Henry's Wives, .... 

Henry's Death, .... 

Edward TI, The Regency, 
Edward and Mary, Queen of Scots, 
Peasant Revolts, .... 
Progress of the Reformation, 
Edward's Will, .... 

Mary. Lady Jane Grey, 
Catholicism Restored to England, 
The Martyrs at the Stake, 
Mary's Marriage with Philip of Spain, 
Loss of Calais, A.D. 1558, 
Extenuation of Mary's Cruelty, 
Elizabeth. ProteBtantism Restored 
The Puritans, .... 

The Dangers that Environed Elizabeth, 

Elizabeth's Polic}- 

Mary, Queen of Scots, 

The Maritime Growth of England, 

Elizabeth's Defiance of Philip, 

The Invincible Armada, 

Great Names, .... 

Death of Elizabeth, 

Character of Elizabeth, 



to En 



2:1 and 



CHAPTER IX. 



James I. Union of Scotch and English Crowns, 
Persecution of Non-Conformists, , 
King James's Version of the Bible, 

The Gunpowder Plot, 

The Pilgrim Fathers, 

James's Assumption in Matters of Religion, 
James's Assumption in Matters of Government, 

Foreign Affairs 

The Parliament of 1621, .... 

Prince Charles. ..... 



TOPICAL INDEX. 



311 



Sir Walter Raleigh, 

Character of James I., 

Charles I. 

Constitutional Liberty at the Accession of Charles I., 

Renewal of the Constitutional Struggle, 

Petition of Right, A.D. 1628, .... 

The King Can Do No Wrong, 

1 he Purpose of Charles to Rule Alone, . 

Laud, Strafford, and the Two Courts, 

The High Commission and Puritan Emigration, 

The Star Chamber and Illegal Taxation, 

Ship Money and John Hampden, 

The Attempt to Force Episcopacy upon the Scots, 

The Short Parliament, 

The Long Parliament, ..... 
The Attempt of Charles to Arrest the Five Members, 
Civil War Inevitable, .... 
Roundheads and Cavaliers, 
Presbyterianism Made the National Religion, 

Edgehill, A.D. 1642 

Naseby, A.D. 1645, .... 

Struggle between Presbyterians and Independents 

Struggle between Parliament and the Army, 

The Army Becomes Supreme, 

The High Court of Justice, 

Tbe Commonnealtli. 

The Commonwealth and its Perils, 

Worcester, A.D. 1651, 

Parliament and the Army, 

The Expulsion of the Rump Parliament 

Cromwell Made Lord Protector, 

Cromwell Usurps the Government, 

Prosperity under Cromwell's Rale, 

Cromwell's Death, 

Cromwell's Character and Motives, 

Richard Cromwell, 

The Restoration, .... 

The Last Muster of the Puritan Army, 

Charles II. 

The Circumstances under which Charles Became King, 



177 

178 

179 
181 
183 
184 
184 
185 
186 
187 
187 
188 
189 
189 
190 
190 
191 
191 
192 
192 
192 
194 
194 
195 

196 
197 
198 
199 
200 
201 
202 
203 
203 
206 
205 
207 

207 



IIS 



TVFUVU EKDKX. 



.->! Revolution. 
i "he C . . 

- Spas opal Re'.-... 

A - B S 


. 

The Great Firo of I ... 
Oh;;-. - - lis MOO) 
1\ . I ... 
... 
- . at 

. 
J a hi 01 11. - - . : tyranny, 

1 1 v.-.uou'.h. 
jnofTi ... 

Res C dan . tg tnd, 

. . Sei shops 

Willi... 1 Cdn the English Cr 

The Flight of James to France, 
fne Glorious B 1 P&aoeffclrj a. 3 . 

William and Jlarj. The Grand Alliance. 

ad, 

Battle ol Qm Boj da, 
of Rj B* 
BUI of Rights, A TV 1689, 

.'.md, 

[ ;- S 

liam, 
.4.11110. r. e War of the Spanish 

Ifai IbOl (High, 

On - ... Union of England mm) S 

Death, of Good Qneen Anno, 



ueee* 



CU AFTER \ 



Ca OTfe I. The Jacobites. 

The Pretender. 

The South Sea Scheme. 



338 

133 

4;>9 



TOPICAL INDEX. 



313 



The Septennial Act, 

Georg-e II. Robert Walpole, 

War with Spain, 

War of the Austrian Succession, 

The Young Pretender, 

Culloden, .... 

The Last of the Stuarts, . 

The. French and Indian War, . 

The Five Important Points, 

The Battle of Quebec, 

A Proud STear In English Warfare, 

The Struggle for Dominion in India, 

Plassey, 

Cioorgc III. The Peace of Paris, 
Causes of the American Revolution, 
The Repressive Policy of England, 
Search Warrants, 
The Stamp Act, .... 
Boston Port Bill, 
Pal Hoof Lexington, April 19th, 1776, 
Tho Declaration of Independence, 
Surrender of Burgoyne and Alliance with Krai 
William Pitt, Earl of Chatham, 
Yorktown, A. 1). 1781, . 
Peace of Paris, .... 

Causes of the French Revolution, 
The Despotic Rule of Louis XIV. 
The Corrupt Rule of Louis XV., 
The inefficient Ride of Louis XVI. 
The French Sceptics, . 
The Influence of tho American Revolution, 
Tho States-General, 
The Revolution Sweeps away Church and State, 
The Reign of Terror, .... 
Napoleon Bonaparte, 
Admiral Nelson, .... 
Tho Struggle on the Spanish Peninsula, 
Tho Invasion of Russia, 
The Battle of the Nations. 



241 
241 
242 
243 
244 
244 
215 
245 
216 
247 
247 
248 
249 
250 
251 
251 
251 
261 
252 
252 
254 
255 
256 
257 
257 
257 
257 
258 
258 
258 
259 
259 
260 
260 
261 
262 
262 
263 
264 



814 



TOPICAL rVDEX. 



Napoleon at Elba. 

Waterloo, A.D. L81S 

Napoleon at St. Helena. 

Causes of England's Second War with the United States, 

Right of Search and Impressment of Seamen, . 

"Decrees* of Napoleon and "Orders" of English Council, 
Declaration of War by the United States, 

Battle of New Orleans 

Peace of Ghent. ........ 

The Regency. 

CSeorgre IV. England alter the Napoleonic Wars, 

The Corn Law, 

Agitation on the Subject of Reform 

The Repeal of the Corporation and Test Acts. 

The Catholic Emancipation Bill 

Daniel O'Connell, 

Navarino, A.D 1827 

Character of George IV., 

William IT. 

State of Feeling in England at the Accession of William. 

The Reform Bill of 1832, 

Results of Reform Legislation. 

Abolition of Slavery in the Colonies, 

Character of William IV.. 

Victoria. Reform Legislation in the 

Repeal of the Corn Laws, 

The Chartists. .... 

The Disestablishment of the Irish Church, 

The Irish Land Bill, 



Reign of Victoria. 



The Education Bill, 

The Foreign Policy, 

War with Egypt, 

Wars with China. 

The Balance of Power, 

The Crimean War, 

The Sepoy Rebellion, 

Havelock and the Relief of Lucknow. 

Campbell and the Second Relief of Lucknow, 

The Affair of the Trent. 



264 

26 i 
266 

267 
269 
. B 
268 
269 
269 
269 
271 
271 

273 
273 

27 I 
275 

276 
277 
273 
279 
279 

281 
282 
28S 

286 

28 

281 

281 

283 

288 

290 

291 

292 

293 

294 



TOPICAL INDEX. 315 

The Alabama Claims, .295 

Queen Victoria, . 296 

Prince Albert, . 297 

The England of To-day, .... .298 

The British Government. 

The Executive Department, 800 

The Legislative Department, .... 302 

The House of Lords 302 

The Douse of Commons, 302 

The Judiciary Department, SOS 



index. 



AUbnmA Clttuua !9(, 

Abysinla 287 

Aero (<j ker) 288 

Art <>r Settlement 980 

Act of Supremacy 140. 111 

Act of Uniformity 184,911 

Af>ghan la-tan' 987 

a In oourt(d tMn-koor 1 ), Buttle of07 

A-jrrlo'o-la 15 

Aix-i t'Chapelle (aAet-luA aha 

Treaty Qt 948 

Al'bert, Prluoe 187 

Alloe Lisle (.'./<•) 990 

America. Disouvory of 198 

Am. 1 loan Settlements 1 1 1, 189 

Angles (an'gte)... 16 

An glu sej 19 

Anno Uoleyn (ooo('tm).... 183, 1 16, 146 

anne of Clevea 146 

Anti-Coi n Law League 981 

An'solm Sti 

Ar»a-bel'la Stuart 178 

Aron-an'gel i<;4 

Ar'ool 949 

Arthur, King, 17 

Arthur, Prlnoe 57 

Ion , r >i 

Austrian SuooeBSlon, War ol 948 

Balance of Power 188 

Hal-ak l.'i'va 94)1 

Ba ii-ci, Edwaid 75 

Ballol.John 67 

Ban'nook-burn, Hatilo or 71 

Bar'net, Battle 01' 110 

Beoket, Thomas a 40, 50 

Bode 19 

Bel'glum -'77 

Bonevolenee ill, 198, 188 

Bengal (bruguwl 1 ) 999 

Hill of Rights 998 

Blaok Death 84 

Black Hula of Calcutta 240 

Blaok Prince 76, 77, s;> 

Blake, Admiral 199 

Blenheim (6/e»»'a/m«), B.iUlo of... 984 

Bloody Assise 2jo 

Bloody Statute in 

Bluchor (b.oo'ktr). General 966 

Boadioe a. Queen u 

Bo'na-parte, Napoleon ... 981, jm, j»fl 

Bo na-parte, Louis Napoleon 881 

Boston 187 

Boston Port Bill SOU 



Bos'worth, Battle of in 

Both' well, Barl of lei 

Boyne, Battle of the 2M 

Bretigny (i:rttctnyt) 78 

Bright, John 980 

British Constitution 230 

British Bmpirt 10 

British Government 300 

Brougham (oroo'om), Lord 980 

Bruoe, Robert 07, 6;> 

Brus'sels J77 

Buok'lng-ham, Duke of 117 

Bun'yan, John 215 

Bui goyno', General 256 

Burgundy, Duchess of 198 

By'ron, 1 ord 275 

Ca-bal'. The 214 

Oablnej 800 

Cab'otB 127 

Cade, .lack 104 

UaVsar, fulliis 1.1 

Calais (kiW is) 70, 152 

Cal-out'ta 249 

Campbell. Sir Col'ln 2!»;i 

( lampeg'glo 188 

Oa-rao'tA-ous 11 

Car-nat'lo 949 

Car'o-lino Of Brunswick 275 

Cath'e-rine of AWra-gon l;>o, 135 

Catherine of Bra-gan'ia 948 

Catherine Howard 145 

Catherine ran- us 

Catholic Associations 273 

Cathollo Emancipation Bill 273 

Cavallera 191 

Cavalier Parliament 911 

Cawnpore' ma 

Cazton, William 127 

Chancery, Court of f>i>, :;o3 

Charles Edward, the Pretender.. 244 

Chartists 989,988 

Chaucer (eAoWser) 87 

Chev'y Chase 87 

China, War with . 2$a 

Chivalry 30, 82 

Church ofSngland 140, 154 

Churchill, Lord -24, 2J4, 438 

Clive, Robert 249 

Cob'den, Richard ISO 

Columbus 198 

Common Prayer, Book o( 143 

Commonwealth 19(> 

Compur K»'iiou 641 



318 



INDEX. 



Constitution, British 830 

Constitutions of Clarendon 49 

Convention, Parliament 210 

Corn-Laws 261,251 

Corn-wallis, Lord 257 

Corporation Act 211, 272 

Court oi High Commission... 185, 

186, 190 
Court of Star Chamber.. ..185, 1ST, l!)0 

Covenanters 188,212 

Cranmer, 1 nomas . . . 135, 115, 117, 151 

Cressy (kres'se), Battle of 76 

Crl-me'a 2:'0 

Cromwell, Thomas 144, 115 

Cromwell, Oliver 192,200 

Cromwell, Richard 206 

Crusaded 3S 

Cul-lo'den, Battle of 211 

Cumberland, Duke oi 280 

Cur'tew Bell 31,42 

Dane'geld 24 

Darn'ley, Lord li;o 

"Decrees" of Napoleon 268 

Declarat ion of lndu Igeuce 223 

De-i'ra.. •••.•••«...•..... 10 32 

De Kuvter (rifter) .*..*.".'. 199 

Det'ting-en, Battleof j i3 

Dooms'day Book 34 

Drake, Sir Francis 165,166 

Pru'idism 12 

Dun'bar, Battles of 67, L97 

Dun'kirk 203, 214 

Du Quesne (A - ane\ Fort 246 

East India Company 248, 294 

Edgehill, Battle of 192 

Education Bill 286 

Egypt 287 

El'ba, Island of. 254 

Eleanor, [sister of Arthur] 57 

Elgi'-va 24 

El'i-ot, Sir John 182 

Elizabeth, Queen of Henry VII... 119 

Empson and Dudley 131 

Eu-nis-kil'len 228 

E-ras'mus 1*8, 136 

Eugene, Priuce 234 

Evesham„Battl6 of — 65 

Falkirk 6S 

Feudal System 33 

Field oi Cloth of Gold 132 

Fire ot London 213 

Fisher, Bishop 141 

Flod'den Field, Battle oi 132 

Fotu'er-iu-gay Castle 163 

French Revolution 257 

Fro'bish-er, Martin 164,167 

Gaa'ooigne (-koin). Chief Justice. '04 

Gaves-ton Biers 70 

George, Prince of Denmark.. — 237 

Ghent, Treaty of.. 269 

Gibraltar (jib'-rawl'ter) .... 257 

Glendower, Owen 92 

Godwin 9.) 

Grand Alliance 227 

Grand Alliance, Second 232 

Greece 274 

Qroy, Lord -. 116 



Grey, Lady Jane 132. 148. US 

Grouchy fgroo BfteJ, Marshal.. •• 265 

Guiana (ghe-ah nah) 178 

Guise (y u-cez). Duke ol — 153 

Gunpowder Plot 172 

Guth'rum • 22 

Guy Faw kea 172 

Ha'be-aa Cor'pus Act 217 

Halidon Hill, B.ittle of 76 

Hampden, John 187, 192 

Hanover 2-0 

HarfLeur (liur'tfur) 9; 

Hastings, Battle oi 30 

Hastings, Lord nt; 

Hastings. Warren 282 

Hav'e-lock. General 292 

Bawke, Admiral 218 

Ilaw'kins, Admiral 164, 167 

Hen'gistand Horsa 16 

Henrietta Maria 177, 182 

Heptarchy 18 

High Court of Justice 19S 

Hong Kong 288 

House of Commons 6!, f 

House of Lords 81, 

Howard, Lord 1H7 

Huguenots [hu'ghe-nots) 182 

Hundred Fears' War 97 

Independents ■ 192 

India 21S 

impressment of Seamen 267 

Ink'er-man, Battle of. 291 

Interdict 57.58 

Invincible Armada 166 

Irish Churcb 28"> 

Irish Land Bill.... 286 

Isabella, Queen 72,74.76 

Jac'o-bites 238 

Jamestown 173 

Jane Seymour 115 

Jeffries, Judge 220, 221 

Jews 53,69,202,285 

Joan of Arc 100 

John of Gaunt 124 

Joint High Commission 2;t6 

Judiciary System 50 

Judiciary Department 303 

Judgment of God 51 

King's Evil 29 

Kirke's Lambs 220 

LaHogue (fidg), Battle of 229 

Langside, Battleof 162 

Lang'tou, Stephen 57, 61 

Lat'i-mer, Bishop 151 

Laud, Archbisho] — 185, 190 

Leicester (ies**er), Karl 01 165 

Loiyisio (lipe'sik). Battleof. 264 

Lew 'os (lu'-is), Battleof 64 

Lexington, Battleof 252 

Limoges, (2ee-t»08&'J 65 

Llew ei'lvn 65 

Lochlev'en Castle ifti 

Lollards !)6 

Londonderry 223 

Long Parliament 189 : t; 

Louis XIV. of France 257 

Louis XT. of Franco 208 



INDEX. 



319 



Lords XVI. of France 258 

Louis XVIII. of France 2(U 

Louis Philippe (loo'efe-leep 1 ) 276 

Lonlsbnrg 243 

Luck'-now 292,2!i3 

Lather, Martin 138 

Magna < harta 5!) 

MaFa-koff B91 

Malplaquot (mul pl<ih-!;a'),liMl\u of 234 

Mar, Karl Ol 239 

Margaret of Anion (on-zhoo) . — 108 

M.nia Theresa Vta-rtfzah) 243 

Marl'bor-ough, Duke of.. 224,234,236 

Marlborough, Duchess of. 235 

Marslon Moor, Battle Of 192 

Maw, Queen of Scots 146, 159 

Mas'ham. Mrs 237 

Matilda, [wife of Conqueror] 36 

Matilda [wife of Henry I.] 41 

Matilda, [wife of Geoffrey Plan- 

tagenet] 42 

Mee'rut 292 

Milton 218 

Min'den, Battleof 248 

Monk, General 206 

Monmouth, Duke of 219 

Montcalm (mdnt-k&nv), Marquis of247 

Montfort, Simon de 64 

More, Sir Thomas 137. 141 

Mortimer, Roger..... 72 

Mortimer's Gross, Battle of 107 

Nantes (mints). Edict of. 227 

Napoleon.. 261,264,266 

Nase by, Battleof 192 

National Convention 261 

Navigation Laws 198, 2r>3 

Navarino (n<ih-vah-re?no), Battle of 274 

Navv, British 99 

Nelson, Lord 262 

Nana Sahib (sah-eeb ) 293 

Neville's Cross, Battle of. 77 

New Forest 35 

New Or'leans, Battle of. 268 

Nightingale, Florence 291 

Oates, Titus 216 

OVonnell, Daniel 273 

Oldcastle, Sir John , 95 

Orangemen 228 

"Orders of Euglish Council". ... 268 

Ofter-burn 87 

Ou'de-narde (-dehj, Battleof 234 

Pakenham (pak'n-am), General... 268 

Paris, Treaty of. 250, 257 

Parliament 81 

Parliamentary Heform 271, 277 

Peel, Sir Robert 283 

Pembroke, Earl of. 62 

Peninsular War 262 

Perkin Warbeek 124 

Peter the Hermit 38 

Petition of Bight 183 

Philip II. of Spain 150,152,157 

Philip pa, Queeu 77 

Pilgrim Fathers 173 

Pilgrim's Progress, Bunvan's.. .. 215 
Pitt, William, Earl of Chatham... 256 
Pitt, William, the Younger 269 



Plague, the Great 213 

Plantagenet, Geoffrey 42 

Plantagenet, Origiu of Name 48 

Plas'sey, Battleof. 249 

Poictiers (poi-teerz 1 ), Battle of..... 77 

Pon-di-cher'ry (-sher-) 249 

Popish Plot 218 

Presbyterians 192 

Preston Pans, Battle of. 214 

Prince Albeit. ■ 297 

Prince of Wales, Tule of 66 

Printing 127 

Privy Council 300 

Protestants 143 

Puritans 155 

Purveyance 175 

Pvm, John DO 

Quakers 202,212, 215 

Que-bec, Battle of 247 

Quiberon Bav 248 

Raleigh (raw'le), Sir Walter 177 

Bam'il-lies, Battle ol 234 

Reformation, First 79. 86,91, 95 

Reformation, Great 138, 140, 147 

Regicides 210 

Reign of Terror - 260 

Restoration 206 

Revolution of 1688 226 

Revolution, American 251 

Revolution, French 257 

Rheims (reemz) 102 

Richard, Duke of Gloucester .... 116 

Richelieu (resh'eh-loo) 182 

Ridley, Bishop 151 

Bight of Search 267 

Rivers, Lord 116 

Rizzio (reet'se-o) 161 

Robert, Duke ot Normandy 41 

Robert, Earl of Essex 169 

Robin Hood 45 

Rochelle (ro-sheV) 182 

Rouen (roo'ang) 98 

Roundheads- 191 

Rump Parliament 196,199 

Russell, Lord 217 

Rye-House Plot 217 

Rys'wick, Treaty of 229 

St. Alban (aicl'ban) 18 

St. Alban's, Battle of 107 

St. Au-gus-tiue (-teen) „ 19 

St. Brice, Massacre of 24 

St. He-le'na 266 

Sal'a-din 54 

Sal'icLaw 76 

Sar-a-to'ga — ...... 255 

Scoue 67 

Scots and Picts 16 

Search Warrauts 251 

Se-bas-to'-pol 290 

Sedgemoor, Battleof 219 

Sepoy Rebellion , 291 

Serfdom 20,83,85 

Septennial Act 241 

Se-ve'rus 16 

Shakspeare 169 

Ship Money 187 

Short Parliament 1£0 



320 



INDEX. 



Sldonia, Medina 166 

Simnel Lambert 124 

Sidnev Algernon 217 

Slavery, Abolition of. 879 

Somerset, Duke of 105 

South Sea Scheme 239 

Speusers 72 

Spurs, Battle of 131 

Stafford, Lord 216 

Stamp Act 251 

Star Chamber 129, 1S5, 1S7, 190 

States-General 259 

Strafford, Lord 1S5 

Strongbow ■• 52 

Stuart, Charles Edward 244 

Stuart, James Francis 232, 2:9 

Sue-to ni-us (sire-) 14 

Suffolk, Duke of. Iu3 

Suppression of Religious Houses 143 

Supremacy 140, 141 

Supremacv, Oath of 154 

Su-rajah bowlah 249 

Sydney, Sir Philip 166 

Svria ... 287 

Tal-a-re ra, Battle of. 263 

Te»tAet 215,272 

Tewkes burr, Battle of. 109 

Toleration Act 330 

Tor bar 225 

Tow ton, Battle of 108 

Traf-al gar , Battle of 233 

Trent- t* 



Trial by Jury 51 

Triple Alliance 214 

Troyes (trioah), Treaty of 99 

Tudor, Owen ". 99.194 

Tvr-eon'nel 222, 22s 

Tyrrel, Walter 38 

Union of England and Ireland 273 

Union of Eng. and Scotland.. 171,238 

Utrecht, Treatv of 234 

Van Tromp. Admiral 19.) 

Victoria. Queen 296 

Viliers (Ht'yerz), George 176, 161.184 

Virgiuia.. 173 

Wager of Battle 51 

Wakefield. Battle of 107 

Wallace, William 68 

Watpole, Sir Robert 241 

Wars of the Roses.... 90. 105, 106, 111 
War of the Spanish Succession... 234 
Warwick (icar'rik). Karl ot... 105. 113 

Washington, George 254 

Wat Trier 83 

Waterloo, Battle oi 261 

Wel'liugtou, Dukeof 263 

Wiek'liffe, John 79, S6, 96 

Wilberforoe, William 280 

William, Prince [son of Henry 1.] 42 

Witau-as'e-mot 20 

Wolfe, General 247 

Wolser, (wool'-ze) Cardinal 133 

Worcester, (woo*'-ter) Battle of.. 137 
Yorktowu 267 



CARDINAL DATES OP ENGLISH HISTORY. 



55 B. C. Britain invaded by the Romans under Julius Coesai 
*3 a.d. Conquest of Britain begun by Emperor Claudius. 
78 Conquest completed by the Roman general Agricola 

430 Britain evacuated by the Romans. 

449 Landing of the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes. 

6or Saxon conquest completed at the battle of Chester. 

827 English Monarchy founded by Egbert. 

S7i Alfred the Creat. 
ioo:3 Massacre of Danes by Ethelred the Unready. 
ioi3 England conquered by Sweyn. king of Denmark 
ioi7 Canute the Great* Establishment of Danish Rale 
ion Edward the Confessor. Saxon Line restored. 
1066 Battle of Hastings. 

William I. Beginning of Norman Line. 
1087 William II. 
lioo Henry I. Union of Saxon and Norman Families 

1101 First Charter of Liberties. 

1135 Stephen. Usurpation of Stephen. 

us* Henry II. Beginning of the Plantagenet Family 

H64 Constitutions of Clarendon. 

1173 Conquest of Ireland. 

1189 Richard I. 

ii99 John. 

1215 Magna Charta. 

iai6 Henry III. 

1364 Battle of Lewes. 

1265 First House of Commons. 

Battle of Evesham. 
1373 Edward I. 
1383 Conquest of Wales. 
1390 Banishment of Jews 
1296 Arbitrary taxation forbidden 
1397 Battle of Dunbar. 
1307 Edward II. 



322 CARDINAL DATES OF ENGLISH HISTORY. 

1314 Battle of Banuoekburn. 

1337 Edward III. 

1333 Battle of Halidon Hill. 

13*0 Battles of Cressy aud Neville's Cross. 

1347 Capture of Calais. 

1358 Battle of Poietiers. 

i J60 Peace of Bretigny. 

1377 Richard II. 

• 3si The Peasants' Revolt or Wat Tyler's Rebellion. 

1399 Henry IV. Beginning of the House of Lancaster. 

1401 First martyr at the stake. 

1403 Battle of Shrewsbury. 

1413 Henry V. 

1415 Battle of Agincourt. 

14-30 Treaty of Troyes. 

i433 Henry VI. 

1439 Siege of Orleans. 

1451 Loss of all France but Calais. 

1455 Beginning of Wars of the Roses 

First Battle of St. Albans. 
1460 Battle of Wakefield 
ii6i Second Battle of St. Albaus. 

Edward IV. Beginning of the House of York. 

Battle of Towtou. 
1471 Battles of Barnet aud Tewkesbury. 
1476 Introduction of the Printing Press. 
14S3 Edward V. Usurpation of Richard, Duke of Gloucestei 

Richard III. 
14S5 Battle of Bosvrorth and end of Wars of the Roses. 

Henry VII. Beginning of the Tudor Family. 
1497 Discovery of the Continent of North America. 
1509 Henry VIII. 
1513 Battle of Floddeu Field. 

1517 Beginning of the Great Reformation in Germany. 
\ 531 Beginning of the Great Reformation in England. 
i»3* The king made Supreme Head of the Church of England. 
1547 Edward VI. Battle of Pinkie. 
1353 Mary. The Catholic religion restored. 
L558 Loss of Calais. 

Elizabeth. The Protestant religion restored. 



CARDINAL, DATES OF ENGLISH HISTORY. 323 

1587 Death of Mary, Queen of Scots. 

i.»s8 Destruction of the Invincible Armada. 

1003 James I. Beginning of the Stuart Family. 

loos The Gunpowder Plot. 

16l)7 Settlement of Jamestown. 

ion Translation of the Bible. 

1620 Landing of the Pilgrims. 

leas diaries I. 

1628 The Petition of Right. 

1030 Settlement of Boston. 

1037 Levy of Ship Money. 

1040 Meeting of the Long Parliament. 

iG4a Beginning of the Civil War. 

Battle of Edgehill. 
1045 Battle of Naseby. 

1049 High Court of Justice, and Execution of Charles I. 
1649 Monarchy abolished — Commonwealth founded. 

1050 Battle of Dunbar. 

1051 Battle of Worcester. 

1053 Cromwell made Lord Protector. 

105* Cromwell usurps the Government. 

1660 Charles II. The Restoration of the Monarchy. 

looi The Episcopal Religion restored. 

1005 The London Plague. 

looo The London Fire. 

1078 The Popish Plot. 

1679 The Habeas Corpus Act. 

1083 The Rye House Plot. 

loss James II. Battle of Sedgemoor. 

1688 The Glorious Revolution. 

lose William and Mary. Accession of William and Mary 

1689 TJie Bill of Rights. 
looo Battle of the Boyne. 
1097 Peace of Ryswick. 
1701 Act of Settlement. 

i*oa Anne. War of the Spanish Succession. 

1707 Constitutional Union of England and Scotland 

1713 Peace of Utrecht. 



,>'.M CJLRDINAl DATES' OF BKQLI8H uisvokt. 

i;n Qsorg* It 

i:i> Of the tldei Pretender* 

it II Septfl v 

17J? GtoOfgS II. 

tit] W ■ Ol I 10 Austrian Succession, 

wo Landing Of I •■. 'Pretender, 

11 10 Battle of Cttllo 

\;is Peaoe of llx«la«Ch ipolle 

i id Indian. 01 Seven Years'. W • 

,:>..i Battle of Qae 

' I 111. 

1769 

l7lV . S ■ Lot, 
it: i Boston Port Bill, 
itt> Battle of i os 
l 7 7 1 ; 

I?:: Surrender of Burg Saratoga 

it<i Surrender of Qornwailia at Torctown, 
1783 • ■' 5 

its-.) Dm Frenoh Revolution, 
im U on ol England and Ireland 

ism Battta of rrafalgar, 
ku Seoond war with the United States. 
UU4 

i«ia Battle of Waterloo and tall of Napoleon 
ism George iv. 
i^t Battls of Uavarlno 
lsm Catholic Emancipation Bill, 

i»:>' Wilha-n IV. 

133 '.7. 

,s;i Ibolition Of Slavery in the Colonies. 

ivjt Victoria. 

istt^ Repeal of the Oorn Laws. 

ism The Crimean War. 

is.-.t [In Sepoy Rebellion. 

IMS !'he government Of India assumed by the Crown 

iati Death of Pi wt, 

i<(V.» Disestablishment ot* the Irish Ohureh. 
1870 i'he Education Bill. 



